NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (July 24, 2008)  The US Youth Soccer National Championships continued Thursday evening with the second night of preliminary round play at Burns Park Soccer Complex with Under-17 boys and girls divisions. Each team played its second of three preliminary matches seeking three points for a win or one point for a tie.

US Youth Soccer alum Brian Ching of the Houston Dynamo and U.S. national team was onsite signing autographs and meeting fans at the tournament's interactive area. Ching played his US Youth Soccer ball with the Honolulu Bulls (HI) where his teams were able to qualify for the regional level of the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series but fell short of earning a trip to the national championships.  

"This [US Youth Soccer National Championships Series] is the tournament that we looked forward to and I had some of my greatest experiences with my team and in youth soccer at these tournaments," said Ching. "The level of play is about 10 times better than what it was when I was growing up."

FC Bucks Vipers (E-PA) handed Slammers FC (CA-S) their second loss of the championships tonight, 2:1. The Viper attack started early as Heidi Sabatura scored her second goal of the week in the 3^rd minute of play. Sabatura and Becka Riveral of the Dallas Texans 91 Red lead the division in goal scoring. Sabatura's teammate Kaitlyn Kerr added the go ahead goal in stoppage time at the end of the first half. Kylie Doniak cut the Viper lead in half in the 82^nd but the Slammers would run out of time.

Eclipse Select 90-91 (IL) took an early two goal lead thanks to Leah Fortune in the 8^th and Carly Smithe in the 18^th against the Dallas Texans 91 Red. The spirited contest between two of the most decorated clubs in America neared a boil as both sides sought a positive result. The sidelines were full of players from both clubs, additional clubs, families and fans in a game that offered high emotion. Becka Rivera gave her Texans side a chance off a goal in the 64th but it would be Eclipse with the 2:1 win. The Under-17 girls final will be determined tomorrow.

Three-time national qualifier FC Delco Hammerheads (E-PA) met up with Diablo FC Black Pearl (CA-N) who has qualified for their first national championship. Today in the Under-17 Boys match it was all about Delco's Chris Harmon who scored his first, second and third goals of the tournament to complete the hat trick and propel his team to the 3:1 win over Diablo. Harmon leads all scorers in the Under-17 division.

Tonight's second Under-17 Boys match would see Everest Soccer Club (OH-N) against Andromeda 91 (N-TX). Christopher McElwee netted a beautiful goal in the first minute to the near post for Andromeda. Climbing back, Everest's Ty Smith scored in minute 91 to knot the score at 1:1. The game would end tied just as these two teams reside in the standings with a win and a loss on the week. 

Play resumes tomorrow, Friday, at 7:30 a.m. Updated game results are available throughout the day at http://Championships.USYouthSoccer.org.

On Saturday, August 9, The US Youth Soccer National Championships Highlight Show, presented by adidas, will air on the Fox Soccer Channel, US Youth Soccer's official television partner, at 1 p.m. ET. The two-hour show will highlight the national championships providing feature stories, interviews, game highlights and much, much more.

The 2008 US Youth Soccer National Championship Series is the country's most prestigious national youth soccer tournament, providing over 185,000 players on more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer's 55 state associations the opportunity to showcase their soccer skills against the best competition in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play.

2008 US Youth Soccer National Championships
Day 2 Evening Session Results - Preliminary Matches

Under-17 Boys    
Diablo FC Black Pearl 90 vs. FC Delco Hammerheads, 1:3
Goal scorers:        DEL - Chris Harmon (90:00+), DEL - Chris Harmon (72:00), DEL - Chris Harmon (3:00), DIA - Edgar Villagrana (5:00)

Everest Soccer Club vs. Andromeda 91, 1:1
Goal scorers:        EVE - Ty Smith (91:00), AND - Christopher McElwee (1:00)

Under-17 Girls
Eclipse Select 90-91 vs. Dallas Texans 91 Red, 2:1
Goal scorers:        DTX - Becka Rivera (64:00), ECL - Carly Smithe (18:00), ECL - Leah Fortune (8:00

Slammers FC vs. FC Bucks Vipers, 1:2
Goal scorers:        SLA - Kylie Doniak (82:00), BUC - Kaitlyn Kerr (45:00+), BUC - Heidi Sabatura (3:00)

For complete statistics please go to http://championships.usyouthsoccer.org.

The 2008 US Youth Soccer National Championship Series is the country's most prestigious national youth soccer tournament, providing over 185,000 players on more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer's 55 state associations the opportunity to showcase their soccer skills against the best competition in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play.

The US Youth Soccer National Championships cap a yearlong series of competitions for boys and girls teams in multiple age groups as teams earn their way from the top team in their state to the regional championship tournaments. State Cup champions and selected wildcard teams in most age groups are eligible to compete in one of four US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. The champions in the under-14 through under-19 age group from each regional event converge to enjoy the nation's top competition.

The James P. McGuire Cup is the oldest trophy in youth sport dating back to 1935 with the inaugural youth championships. The under-19 boys age group as the National Champion will hoist the McGuire Cup. This is the 73rd anniversary of the storied cup.

Annually the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides the nation's top collegiate coaches with the premier stage to identify and scout the most coveted players in the country. In 2008, over 600 coaches attended the US Youth Soccer Regional Championships including the majority of the top 25 men's and women's programs based on the final 2008 NSCAA/adidas National Rankings for NCAA Division I schools.

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About the United States Youth Soccer Association (US Youth Soccer)
The Game for ALL Kids!^® is the largest youth sports organization in the country and largest member of the United States Soccer Federation, the governing body of soccer in the United States. US Youth Soccer registers more than 3.2 million players annually, ages 5 to 19, and over 900,000 administrators, coaches and volunteers in 55 member state associations. US Youth Soccer programs provide a fun, safe and healthy environment for players at every level of the game. For more information, visit www.USYouthSoccer.org.

About the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series
The US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer's 55 State Associations the opportunity to showcase their abilities against the best in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play. The yearlong competition begins with over 185,000 players in the US Youth Soccer State Championships.  These champions and selected wildcard teams through US Youth Soccer Regional Leagues advance to compete in one of four the US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. Champions (U-14 through U-19) from each regional event advance to the US Youth Soccer National Championships.  Adding to the excitement in 2008, the national championships will feature two teams from the newly formed US Youth Soccer National League in the U-15 and U-16 age groups.  Overall the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series provides the nation's top collegiate coaches with the premier stage to identify and scout the most coveted players in the country. 

Media Request: When referring to the United States Youth Soccer Association, the largest youth sports organization in the United States, please refer to the association only as US Youth Soccer, and never as USYS or USYSA. We appreciate your cooperation.