SportsForce filmed some of the top Mens U18 teams including the Del Mar Sharks 92 Premier, Arsenal FC, PQ Premier Red, SE Cosmos (Texas) and the United FC Black. SportsForce also caught the top action out of the Girls Division, where the SoCal Blues Defeated the San Diego United FC 3-0 in the finals of the U16 Gold Division.

Below is a list of the games we filmed and links to purchase professionally shot and edited games for $30 + tax & S / H.

If you are interested in having SportsForce cover your tournament games please contact us directly here.

Girls Games:

8/16/09 Girls U16 Championship: SC Blues vs. San Diego United

Boys Games:

8/16/09 Boys U18 Semifinals: Del Mar Sharks 92 vs. SEFC Cosmos

8/15/09 Boys U18-S: San Diego United vs. Carlsbad Lightning

8/15/09 Boys U18-G: Del Mar Sharks 92 vs. Arsenal FC

8/15/09 Boys U18-S: Del Mar Sharks 92 vs. PQ Premier Red

8/15/09 Boys U18-G: PQ Premier Red vs. Arsenal FC

8/15/09 Boys U18-G: PQ Premier Red vs. SEFC Cosmos

College Coach Communication

It is a standard procedure for athletes who are going to be playing Surf Cup to send an email to their prospective school’s coach ,complete with their Surf Cup schedule, schedule for the remainder of the summer, and a video, if they have one.  The coach is allowed to respond to this initial communication at will, but is banned from talking to the athlete or their parents at the event itself.  If the coach likes what they see, they will follow up with the player.  If the coach views the athlete as a potential recruit, they might ask for transcripts for review, ask for further game video, or ask them to make a visit to the school.  It is important to note that none of the follow up will happen unless the athlete makes the effort to contact those coaches of those schools they are interested in attending.

Coach’s Presence

Everywhere you turned at the 2009 Surf Cup you ran into a different college coach, each one decked out head to toe in their school’s gear.  A stroll in between fields would seem to reveal that there were more coaches than players.  At any one time, there might have been 25 coaches watching one game.  Can you imagine the pressure?  The coach from your dream school sits there scrutinizing your every move.  If you’re not the first one to a loose ball or you miss a pass even by just a couple inches, that coach does not hesitate to furiously write some sort of comment next to your name.

The worst part?  They all sit in a neat little row armed with their easy flip, portable chairs, drawstring backpacks, and yellow notepads.  The Duke coach who is sitting directly adjacent to the Georgia coach is looking very quizzical.   The UCLA coach who sits in between the Michigan and Cal coaches is sneaking a peek of his rival’s notes.  The Syracuse coach is minding her own business but scribing what seems to be a novel on one of her players of interest.  All of this is going on while these 16-18 year old kids are trying to make a play for their team.

While it seems impossible for any one of these players to focus on the field, JP Scatterday of the U19 Mustang Ajax told me that it is easy for him to zone in.  Because the field is so big and the action is so intense, he finds it easy to stay focused and is usually surprised when he finds out the number of coaches that were watching his game.  The amount of composure these teenagers are able to display despite such overwhelming pressure is impressive.

The Action

Accompanying the perennial powerhouse club teams of Southern California (San Diego Surf, So Cal Blues, So Cal Real, West Coast FC, Irvine Strikers, So Cal United, and Slammers FC) were teams from all over the country and all over the world.  Aside from the continued dominance of the Southern California teams across the board, the Northern California teams had the next best showing.  While Southern California teams won 3 of the divisions and had a presence in 8 of the 12 finals, Northern California teams won 4 of the 5 divisions in which they had teams in the finals.  The best international showing goes to the Vancouver Whitecaps of Canada.  Their Girl’s U19 team made it to the finals of the super division while their Men’s U19 team was able to advance to the semifinals.

XKSanDiego.com

For more on this weekend’s Surf Cup including results, pictures, articles and more, visit San Diego’s one stop shop for soccer news at www.xksandiego.com.  Complete coverage of events, tournaments, and teams from around the San Diego area year round can be found at xksandiego.com.

SportsForce was able to capture some awesome footage, get plenty of quality interviews, and increase awareness of our brand throughout the soccer community.  All in all it was a great event and one that SportsForce hopes to do more with in the future.

The event consisted of four teams: South County, North County, East County, and a San Diego City team.  During the morning, the North and South teams both ran the “60” (60 yard sprint) with scouts and coaches eagerly timing each player.  After, both teams proceeded to take a 30 minute batting practice session, followed by a ten minute infield/outfield.  The teams then played a nine inning game with slightly different rules.  Each ½ inning consisted of a new pitcher facing a maximum of five batters, with the bases being cleared after three outs.  During the afternoon, the same process was repeated by the East and City teams.

There were many impressive players throughout the day, but there were a few from each team who really stood out.

South County:

Agustin Lopez from Montgomery got the game started off on the right foot by blasting a home run to left field in the 1^st inning.  Lopez, a 6’1” RHP / 1B, also pitched a scoreless inning on the mound.  He is coming off a very strong year on the mound where he had a 1.91 ERA and held opponents to a .189 BA.  Hector Montes, an infielder from Bonita Vista, put on a very impressive power display during batting practice, belting numerous homers to left and center field.  At 235 lbs, he was surprisingly fast, running his 60 in 7.47 seconds. Montes was dominant during his high school season batting .429 and hitting 7 home runs.  Robert Lucero, a 6’1” outfielder from Chula Vista, displayed impressive power by hitting a home run during the game.  He ran his 60 in 6.78 seconds which is above average speed for an outfielder.

North County:

Reed Reznicek, a 6’2” right-handed pitcher from Rancho Buena Vista, was the most impressive pitcher of the day.  He struck out three during his inning of work, and kept batters guessing with an array of different pitches.  He was helped by batters swinging at bad pitches, but for the most part, he consistently located his fastball on the corners and utilized his off-speed pitches which included a tight slider and change up.  Jimmy Allen, also from Rancho Buena Vista, put together impressive at-bats throughout the day, which was capped off by an RBI double.  Allen, a versatile player, can play both infield and outfield, and ran an impressive 6.88 second 60 yard sprint.  Last season, he hit .387 with five home runs .  Aaron Siliga, a left-handed outfielder and pitcher from Oceanside, is a scrappy player who can do many different things on the baseball field.  He has a quick swing and hits the ball very well to left-center field.  He also possesses a very strong arm in the outfield and has speed to cover a lot of ground.  Last year, he hit .400.

East County:

Brian Carroll, a 5’11” center fielder from Granite Hills, impressed both offensively and defensively.  During batting practice, he sprayed line drives all over the field with many of them actually leaving the park.  Carroll showed off his strong arm in the outfield as well as his blazing speed.  He ran his 60 in 6.8 seconds.  His Granite Hills teammate, Jared Hunt, was equally impressive.  A versatile player who can play all over the diamond, Hunt has a beautiful left-handed stroke with power to all fields.  This was evident during his batting practice session, when he hit many balls out of the park.  He capped it off by hitting a ground rule double to the deepest part of the park during the game.  Evan Potter, a 6’1” shortstop from Grossmont, showed off his nice opposite field approach by hitting a triple to the right-center field gap.  He also was very solid defensively, showing off his solid hands and making all the necessary plays.

City:

Casey Munoz, a 5’10” 190 lb. outfielder from Cathedral, did not hit anything but line drives throughout the day.  Built more like a linebacker than an outfielder, Munoz constantly put good swings on the ball and did not appear fooled by any of the pitchers.  During the spring season he hit a staggering .483 with five home runs.  Dominique Brewington, a switch-hitting outfielder from Morse High School, showed off his dazzling speed by running the 60 in 6.73 seconds.  With a batting stance similar to Curtis Granderson, Brewington impressed from both sides of the plate and put a lot of pressure on the defense due to his speed.  Last season he hit .371 with 27 stolen bases .  Connor Hoffman, an outfielder from St. Augustine, impressed all the scouts by running his 60 in 6.46 seconds.  Hoffman can really swing the bat well and already is showing the potential to play at the Major League level.

The San Diego High School Baseball Showcase gave all of these athletes an opportunity to impress college coaches and MLB scouts, and each player took full advantage making it a very enjoyable and entertaining day.

19^th Annual Alex Spanos All-Star Football Classic

SportsForce was meeting with coaches and filming at the 19^th Annual Alex Spanos All-Star Football Classic where some of San Diego’s best graduating senior football players are showcased before heading off to play college football. Many of the players at the showcase have signed with college programs including SportsForce alum, La Jolla’s Robbie Beathard who will be playing at the University of San Diego. Jerik Davis of Mira Mesa who will be playing at New Mexico State and Robbie Rouse of Madison High School who is signed with Fresno State.

San Diego High School Baseball Showcase

The San Diego Showcase sponsored by the San Diego County Baseball Coaches Association was held July 12 at Poway High School. The event showcased top baseball players from around the county who are entering their senior year. Over 20 college coaches (including USD, Long Beach State, Univ. of Oklahoma, LMU and more) and MLB scouts were at the event while SportsForce filmed the entire pro-style workout and games.

Champions Cup Softball 16U Tournament

SportsForce was able to see top softball players at the Champions Cup Softball 16U Tournament in Irvine, CA this weekend as well. Over 50 college coaches attended the event, which was the first of a two-weekend tournament. The 18U Tournament will be held next weekend.

Top Soccer Tournament – Albion Cup

SportsForce is partnered with the Albion Cup for this weekend’s National Soccer Showcase. The tournament offers college exposure showcasing the top teams in the country. The Showcase is open for teams to play in either the Top Showcase Group or the Cup Group and is for Boys and Girls U8-U19. www.albioncup.org

The Showcase is an amazing opportunity for the athletes and teams that attend and Puma is helping to make one level even more competitive. Puma is putting on a special Puma V Elite Bracket for U14 and U15 teams, including special invitations sent out to Puma clubs from around the country. Noah Gins, Technical Director/ Director of Coaching for the Albion Peninsula Soccer league commented on the company’s involvement. “They’ve brought all the bells and whistles for this including banners, retail stores and tents, and a lounge for kids to hang out in. We had (former women’s national team player) Leslie Osborne here last year,” he said. “We’re at a point now where we want the best teams in the country and that’s what we’re after.” Follow up with us next week for a full recap of the Albion Cup National Soccer Showcase.

New Additions

SportsForce has added a new member to our Street Team, Katherine Salter. Katherine was a former high school volleyball player that was recruited by smaller schools to play college volleyball. Katherine is assisting with our grassroots efforts for Girls and Boys Volleyball.

District Champs

SportsForce partner Dan Plashke’s son Jackie and his little league team won their district this past weekend. The team is now the 9-10 year old District 31 Champions are moving on hoping to win the divisional title this coming weekend. We wish them the best of luck!

SportsForceonline.com

The SportsForce team also met with our web development group, Barefoot Solutions (www.barefootsolutions.com) to discuss the homestretch towards launching the new site. We have a lot of video and content to add to the site as well as some changes to make to ensure the best experience when we launch (hopefully) in early August.

So you just survived your first and second year of high school (phew) and the thoughts of college are beginning to creep into your head. Where do I want to go? What do I want to study? What classes do I need to get into certain schools? As all of this can be somewhat overwhelming, let’s just focus on one aspect at a time.

Freshman/Sophomore/Junior Summer

This is the best time to really get around and see campuses. Because as you all know from my first blog, really loving the school you go to, regardless of sports, is very important.  So if you are traveling around to play in tournaments, go on vacation, or visiting family and friends, take advantage of the travels to go see the local colleges to check out the campus and area. While there you can take a campus tour and if you have given a heads up to the coach of your sport, you can even go in and meet with them. Remember, they cannot call you or contact you in any way, but you can call whenever you want.  Set up a time to meet with them and they might even take you around the campus themselves! This elimination period will be helpful as you enter your junior summer as that is the time when you need to really narrow down your schools and begin to target your goals. By seeing the campuses alone, you will be able to eliminate many schools, thus leaving you with a more reasonable list to deal with.

Summer camps are also very important. While all of your friends are going to Camp Nowhere for fun and kayaking, you need to be going to sports camps for a school that you are strongly interested in. Not only will five days of camp help improve your skills, but it will give you the most intimate interaction with the college coaches and some of the current players, as they tend to work camps. You will live on campus, interact with and be trained by the coaches, as well as be a part of high intensity competition. It is not only a great way to get to know their style of coaching, but for them to get to know you as a player and whether you will fit in with their program, and vice versa.

If going to a camp is not financially feasible, don’t worry, there are ways to get around the costs.  If you live nearby or have friends or family near a camp you want to go to, you can be a commuter camper. You have all the same amount of trainings and usually lunch on campus but will not have breakfast and dinner there and will not sleep over. I have done both, and as you may miss out on some of the social aspects of going to camp, you can still get in-depth perspective of the school and team. Or, a lot of colleges are having one and two day camps, mainly for the sophomore year students, and you would not stay on campus as well. But the costs are much lower.

To find out about camp dates, check out the website of the college you are interested in and I guarantee there will be a link to camps! Some schools have a website dedicated to camps alone. For example, Santa Clara University has the athletic sight, http://www.santaclarabroncos.com/ as well as a camp website http://www.scusoccercamps.com/. Many schools have this as well. Enjoy your summer, have fun and get out there and check out some colleges!!