Grande Sports Academy TeamRank update
Today we unveil our latest update to Grande Sports Academy TeamRank, the comprehensive ranking system for elite club soccer teams nationwide, releasing the latest standings for U13, U14, and U15 Girls. Next week, we will update the older age groups on the Girls side. We will update our National Top 25 for each age group at least once per month.
(scroll down for system details)
Regional spots clinched at U13
Dallas Sting 02 Higginbotham finished the year-long Lake Highlands Girls Classic League undefeated and guaranteed a spot in the top three (FC Dallas Youth Premier and Solar Chelsea Red have a couple of make-up matches left). But those final standings are moot for the 2014 Surf Cup finalist, since Sting already clinched the USYS State Cup title on May 10, beating FC Dallas in the semifinal, and Solar in the final, to grab one of the first spots in the Region III Championships and to climb up one spot to No. 6 in the Grande Sports Academy TeamRank Top 25.
Cincinnati United Premier (CUP) Gold is another team moving on to USYS Regional Championships, and moving up in our standings to No. 10. CUP clinched the Ohio-S State cup final over TFA Elite 01, and also qualified by winning the spring’s Midwest Regional League Premier 1 Red division.
More: ECNL Scoreboard | IMG Academy 150 Rankings | ECNL New Jersey Event Coverage
Bethesda still undefeated at U14
In addition to their 7-0-1 run to remain undefeated in ECNL league play, Bethesda SC is unbeaten in tournament appearances this spring as well, including a 3-0 run at the PDA College Showcase last weekend, and climbs all the way to No. 5.
FC Stars of Massachusetts went on an undefeated run at PDA like Bethesda, and a 3-0-2 run in ECNL action this month, nudging up to No. 6 as a result.
Like their U14 counterparts, FC Stars of Mass tops the New England Division standings and will be headed to ECNL playoffs as one of the top seeds. FC Stars might have had an undefeated run as well, were it not for a narrow 2-1 loss at the New Jersey showcase to No. 4 Michigan Hawks. Nevertheless, FC Stars climbs to No. 5 with two cross-conference matches remaining in the regular season.
The No. 4 Michigan Hawks that topped FC Stars have a stingy defense that has conceded just nine goals in conference action all season, but one of those goals resulted in a 1-0 loss to Eclipse Select last month, and allows Eclipse to climb five spots to No. 17. Eclipse is on a 5-1-1 run since our last update, finishing the regular season with a 14-3-4 record and an ECNL playoff top ten seed. Standouts from this team include forward Adrianna Naumoski and midfielder Amanda Rapaduski whose performance at the New Jersey Showcase in an upset of No. 15 Match Fit Academy earned daily best honors from TopDrawerSoccer.
Next Week: U16, U17, U18 Boys update
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.
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