Today we unveil our latest update to Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25, the comprehensive ranking system for elite club soccer teams nationwide, releasing the latest standings for U13, U14 and U15 Boys. Next week, we will update the younger age groups on the Girls side. We will update our Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25 for each age group at least once per month.

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NPL teams near finale at U13

Michigan based WAZA FC East 01 Juniors are one step closer to a national championship, though the team’s success presents a dilemma. Although last week the team suffered its first loss of the NPL season to Michigan Wolves 01, WAZA remains on top of the Erie West division standings and is likely to gain a berth to the MDL playoffs later in June. WAZA was recently crowned Michigan Youth Soccer State Cup champion as well, beating their nemesis Michigan Wolves along the way. The dilemma is that the MDL playoffs and the USYS Region II Championships occur simultaneously, so coach Gronthik Chatterjee and his squad must choose whether to pursue a US Club Soccer championship, or a US Youth Soccer title instead. Nevertheless, the team’s success in the past month bumps their ranking from No. 13 in the Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25 to No. 5.

Two other teams climbing as a result of National Premier League success are FC Bolts Celtic and Oakwood SC, both participants in the Northeast Pre-Academy League. FC Bolts has had a good season in NEPAL with only four losses, but six draws kept their point total low and off the TeamRank standings. A series of wins in the month of May, including a 1-0 defeat of No. 1 New York Red Bulls, helps them climb into the top 25 at No. 24. Oakwood climbs from No. 25 to No. 21 after improving their NEPAL record to 10-4-4 at the tail end of the season.

Final showcase looming at U14

Though New York Red Bulls continue to have the best record in the Development Academy’s youngest division at 21-1-1, they are not as far ahead of the pack as they were just a month ago, and any of the top six still have a chance to finish with a better record after the final showcase.

Two teams, Orlando City and New York SC, greatly improved their standing in the last month of the regular season. Orlando City moves from No. 16 to No. 10 with a 7-0 record since our last update, improving to 23-4-2 on the season. We’ll see if the win streak continues when they compete against No. 1 New York Red Bulls, No. 6 Dallas Texans and No. 9 FC Golden State at the showcase. Also finishing the regular season on a positive note is New York SC, who went 6-0 after falling to the Red Bulls on April 12, improving their rank from No. 24 to No. 19.

MORE: Development Academy U14 scoreboard | IMG Academy 150 rankings

Flip-flop at U15

With the reverse of the results in the U13 age group, Michigan Wolves 99 overtook nemesis WAZA in the Michigan Youth Soccer State Cup play to be crowned state champion. The Wolves, who climb to No. 14, also topped US Youth Soccer’s Midwest Regional League and will join No. 18 Michigan Jaguars 99 Green at the Region II championships later this month.

New to the Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25 this month at No. 25 is Southern Soccer Academy Chelsea Elite, who toppled Southern Premier League winner and fellow Atlanta metro-based Concorde Fire Elite in the semifinals of the Georgia Youth Soccer state cup. SSA Chelsea finished third in last fall’s Region III Premier League East beating Concorde in the process, and could face Concorde once more at the Region III Championships in just a few weeks.

Next Thursday: U13, U14, and U15 Girls

Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25 is the comprehensive team-ranking system devised by TopDrawerSoccer.com to provide an objective and common-sense approach to determining which elite youth soccer teams are the best in the nation.

The rankings, updated monthly, are primarily results-based, with a nod toward the league and championship competitions that emulate how excellence is determined in leading soccer nations around the world.

Tournaments are also included but at a reduced value due to the many mitigating factors involving such events, including attrition and guest players.

A final layer of executive evaluation is provided to account for variables that often impact results, thus ensuring that the monthly lists are not subjective, but are not purely mechanical.