VIRGINIA BEACH, VA—The South Sound FC Shock, with added firepower from fellow Evergreen Premier League teams, swept through the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA) U23 National Championships on Sunday July 19 to bring home a trophy for the Tacoma club and prestige for the second-year Washington state league.
Read a full report from SouthSoundFC.com
The Shock rampaged through the competition, outscoring their opponents 22-4 (including a 3-0 forfeit win) on their way to the championship. The semifinals were postponed on Saturday night due to lightning, setting up a brutal double header morning. South Sound kicked off against Rosedale Super Eagles (New York) at 7 AM Eastern Standard Time. They won the semifinal match 3-1 thanks to goals from Isidro Prado-Huerta, Vincent McCluskey and Scotty Hanson.
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Cody Guthrie, Barrett Goddard, Timur Zhividze.
The victory set up a Finals match just a few hours later at the Virginia Beach Soccer Complex Stadium. Kick off came at 12 noon EST in hot weather. The Shock were ready to go against Real New York FC. Brandon Madsen gave SSFC a 1-0 lead just 4 minutes in (video). It was 2-0 in the 18th when Eleazar Galvan scored (video). It was 4-0 at the half after Vincent McCluskey and Cody Guthrie chipped in.
In the second half Guthrie got his second goal for a 5-0 advantage for the Washingtonians. Then he got tangled up as the “last defender” in the box and was red carded on a penalty kick call. RNYFC converted to make it 5-1 and the Shock were down to 10 men. However, they never let up and controlled the play. In the late going they even added to their triumph. Timur Zhividze assisted as Isidro Prado-Huerta scored in the 87th and then he drew a penalty call in added time. Taylor Jackson converted it for a 7-1 final. After four years of going to Nationals the Shock and Head Coach Adam Becker head home as champions.
The Evergreen Premier League was rooting with much interest as Wenatchee FC (Eleazar Galvan) and Timur Zhividze (Vancouver Victory FC) were loaned to the Shock for the tournament. Both played well and notched multiple goals and assists in the effort. V2FC owner Barrett Goddard was an assistant coach during the tournament.
