Ballistic united U15 premier  BUSCU15 Premier returned to the State Cup Quarterfinal for the second year-in-a- row. This team was determined to change the result from last year. Their opponent was the two-time defending State Cup Champions from Redwood City Juventus. The two teams had squared off the Sunday before with the score going in favor of the Juventus Heat, 2-1.
The two teams lined up at the Turlock Sports Complex at 3:45pm on Saturday. BUSC won the coin toss, and selected to play uphill and into the wind. The two traded punches throughout the first half with the Heat having the better of the possession. At around the 20th minute marker, BUSC got its first break. A nice combination from the left side of the field created a passing lane to the BUSC striker Mitchell Wilson. Receiving the ball about 25 yards away from goal, Wilson made a very clean turn. As he did, there was no immediate pressure, he took a set-up touch and unleashed an absolute rocket into the side netting. The goal surprised the BUSC team, as this is a team they had been chasing for some years now. This was a pivotal moment. The Heat’s body language changed. They did not appear as confident as they were just moments before. The BUSC group was now riding a 1-0 lead, and was confident as well. The first half ended 1-0 for BUSC.
Second half began and the Heat began to push the game, but when BUSC was able to win the ball back they were able to attack and pressure the Heat goal area. BUSC earned a corner kick, and Ryan Racer snatched ball, ran to the corner flag, and took inventory. He had hit a couple of corner kicks during the second half that ended with near misses. Racer smashed a hard low ball that a Heat defender swung at, skimmed, and the ball ended up bouncing off the ground and into the unknowing defenders arm. The referee immediately pointed to the “spot” for a penalty kick. Sam Molz bravely stepped up again, and smash, paydirt. Later in the second half the Heat earned a corner kick, and a bit of controversy ensued. The BUSC goalkeeper, Tim Sanford, made a wonderful save on a high cross, well above all of the players; but something happened as a Heat player tackled the goalkeeper into the goal. And the referee pointed to the center circle, indicating goal. The goalkeeper protested the goal, and the referee showed a red card, disqualifying him for the rest of the game and the potential next as well. Now BUSC played with 10 vs. 11 and the score was cut in half, 2-1. Within in five minutes a second BUSC player was issued a straight red card. BUSC now played 9 vs. 11 for the final 10 minutes. The ball never left BUSC’s penalty box. But it never crossed the goal line. BUSC had beaten the two time defending state cup champions. This was a fantastic gritty show by the boys from Pleasanton. Onto the semifinals Sunday
Sunday, April 21, 2013 BUSC U15P vs. PAC Indios Semifinals State Cup
Sunday morning and another 80 minutes of soccer were on slate. This game began a bit different than Saturday. The BUSC team snatched the ball, and put on a very nice display of passing, and movement. BUSC managed a couple of very good chances early on, and looked as if the goal was coming. A BUSC player fouled an Indios player 10 yards outside. The two teams lined up for the ensuing free kick. The Indios player hit a hard ball toward the center of the field, as it hit the ground it took a strange bounce and hit the side netting. Just as a goal came out of the run of play on Saturday for BUSC it was just the opposite on Sunday. There was no let down though. They went back to work. BUSC continued pushing forward trying to breakdown the opponent. The half ended 0-1 for Indios.
The second half got underway with BUSC stepping up the line of defending. The BUSC team began dictating the game through strong high pressing defending. Indios slipped out of their defensive half in possession of the ball only a couple of times in the second half. They caused some trouble by blasting the ball and chasing it, only to be thwarted on each attempt by the BUSC center backs Nick Tucker and Armon Ojuola. With this pressure and forcing turn overs, it was only a matter of time before BUSC got its just deserves. A BUSC attacking midfielder, Zachery Connelly, gained control of the ball just outside of the Indios penalty box, and sprinted toward goal. He was about to shoot, and an Indios defender made a foul from behind. A penalty kick was awarded to BUSC. Sam Molz stepped to the spot, and smashed the ball coolly into the back of the net. The game was evened, 1-1. At this point it went back-and-forth until the final whistle, 1-1. Because this is a knockout tournament, the game continued into two 5minute Golden Goal Overtime periods. Meaning sudden death.
Both teams had played extremely well throughout. BUSC managed to gain some momentum during the overtime periods. Now playing the final 5 minutes downhill and the wind-at-the-back the Gold and Blacks were pressing for the winner. BUSC earned a couple of corner kicks. Again, Ryan Racer took the ball to the corner flag placed it. There was a mob of players anticipating the next move. Racer hit a low hard ball that made it to the far side of the goalmouth. Jamal Dessouky made the most of his chance and struck the ball into the top of goal. As the ball rolled down the back of the net, the Gold and Blacks raced around the field. The game ended here. The Golden Goal.
This team has been on quite a roll this year. During the fall, this team finished second in the prestigious NorCal National Premier League; a league that it had not finished better than second to last the prior year. Losing out on first place by one goal. The core of this team has been together since U9s and 10s
May 5 @ 11:00am in Turlock, BUSC will face Stockton Monarcas Aztec Warriors. With luck and hard work, who knows, BUSC may be able to bring home another State Cup Championship.
Posted: 04/30/13
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Ballistic united U11 premier
The Ballistic United U11 Premier soccer team went 6-1-2 during their state cup run. The team finished the season ranked tenth in Northern California for Competitive soccer. For their final game in Turlock, Ballistic United lost in penalty kicks to Athletico Santa Rosa. Ballistic United went down 0-1 early in the match. The team capitalized on a defensive mistake and Joon Kim scored to tie the match 1-1. Athletico would score just before halftime. Ballistic United came out firing on all cylinders at the start of the second half. Kamran Matin made it 2-2 when he finished an amazing pass from Zion Kiehle and Ballistic United were in the ascendency. After hitting the post and missing a few good chances, Athletico got off their heels and the game became a back-and-forth affair with chances at either end. Ben Schwartz made great saves in the goal and Jacob Akanyirige blocked shots off the line to preserve the draw at the end of regulation time. Ballistic United resiliently came from behind twice to tie the game at 2-2. The game finished the overtime period with both teams scoreless. .Ballistic United lost on penalty kicks 3-2. The boys had a very successful year finishing in the top ten after finishing the previous years ranked in the 30s. Congratulations boys! [Pleasanton Weekly]
Posted:02.10.13
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01
Premier
Team:
The
“01-‐ders”
For the past four seasons, a group of Ballistic boys have proven to be worthy of the nickname “01-‐ders,” a play on their team name: 01 Premier. The distinctive feature about the 01-‐ders is that there is no distinctive star. Each game, different boys may shine, but as a team, they are golden. Giving true meaning to the “no-‐“I”-‐in-‐TEAM” mantra, the collective efforts of these boys have earned them league titles each year they have played together. Currently vying for their second premier State Cup title, the 01-‐ders have seen more than league play success. They have found themselves at the end of the bracket in nearly every tournament they have ever played in together. As U-‐9 players in their first competitive year, the team finished NorCal State Cup as Finalists. The following year, eight of the same boys formed the heart of a team that took home the ultimate trophy – a NorCal State Cup championship. The same team took this success on the road, finishing out their U-‐10 career in San Diego as Surf Cup 2011 Semi-‐finalists. As U-‐11’s, the team saw some injuries late in the season, but still finished as semi-‐ finalists in the NorCal State Cup. Then, during the summer of 2012, the team earned the most rewarding tie in team history: a 0-‐0 shutout versus Barcelona USA Academy’s U-‐11 legendary boys, sending the Ballistic boys to the Surf Cup quarterfinals again. Other trophies over the past four years have included two Ballistic Summer Classic trophies and an SC Sporting trophy, along with numerous finalist and semi-‐finalist medals. [Full Story]
Posted:01.12.13
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U12 Elite 2 wins the WC Octoberfest tournament
The Ballistic United U12 Elite 2 team won the Walnut Creek OctoberFest Tournament by winning the championship game 5-2 over Mill Valley Fusion. Goals by Logan Kesavan, Daniel Roberts, and a hat trick by Maxwell Stubbs guided the team to victory. Posting a record of four wins and no losses, the team posted a goal differential of +10, scoring 14 goals and only conceded three.
Outstanding performances by Stubbs, Grant Koziol, Patrick Hu, Izzy Mendoza, and Olivier Rooney in all four games led the team to victory. However, the BUSC team played the Ballistic Style, keeping the ball for prolonged moments and creating lots of scoring opportunities.
Congratulations Boys!
Posted:10/29/12
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Premier 99 win the 2012 Heritage Harvest Cup
Sunday October 18th, Concord, CA. Pleasanton’s Ballistic United Premier 99 under 14 soccer team went undefeated over the weekend to win the Heritage Harvest Cup. Ballistic tied Heritage Rovers 1-1 and then defeated Diablo Blue and Santa Clara Sporting Black by 2-1 scores to earn a spot in the finals against Los Gatos Pumas. Ballistic had lost to the Pumas at the Stockton Champions Cup in September in a game that was decided by penalty kicks following a tie in regulation. In the final Ballistic was down 1-0 at the half but scored 3 goals in quick succession midway through the 2nd half to take control. The final score was Ballistic 3, Pumas 2.
Pictured in the photo left to right, first row: Youki Chiba, Chris Machi, Jason Campbell, Blake Staniford, Ryan Murray, Nico Lemoine, Bryce Taylor, Mysam Sayfurnaham
2nd row, Coach Ed Lecco, Jimmy Thompson, Jacob Dremalas, Jared Wilson, Sam Christensen, Kyle McClanahan, Garrett Howell, Daniel Ferguson, Blake Tucker, Imran Matin, Adolfo Trujillo
Posted:10/29/12
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Ballistic U15 Premier won the Stockton Monarcas Champions Cup
 Ballistic U15 Premier won the Stockton Monarcas Champions Cup tournament September 29 and 30 in Manteca CA. The boys qualified to the final game as the team with the highest points after defeating Santa Rosa Black Oaks 3-0, home team Stockton Monarcas 4-2 and Merced Atlas Academy 3-0 which qualified to the final game as second team with more points. In the final, Atlas was looking for revenge and after an intense game it ended in a 1-1 tie. Ballistic was able to score all 5 shots from the penalty spot in the tie-breaker to take home the trophy. Outstanding passing and exceptional defense were the order of the weekend for Ballistic.
BUSC U15 Premier: Coaches Josh McKay & Pablo Espinosa. Back Row: Jeffrey Klei, Tim Sanford, Rodrigo Diaz, Armon Ojuola, Nick Tucker, Omeed Ziari, Julian Dessouky, Zach Connolly. Front Row: Geoffrey Wiederecht, Sam Molz, Jamal Dessouky Cameron Ritchie, Jackson Still, Mitchell Wilson, Adolfo, Trujillo, Ryan Racer
Posted:10/3/12
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Ballistic United Teams Advance in the CYSA Association Cup this Past Weekend
The U19 Select Team went 2-1 in pool play at the Association Cup at Cherry Island. In game one, Clovis Crossfire defeated the Select 3-2. A late rebound from a corner kick had the Select down 1-0 at half, and a counterattack early in the second put them down 2-0. The Select responded when Alex Lutz made a strong crossing run and was led in stride by Jake Lorentz. He finished near post and the Select were back in the game. As they pressed, another counterattack put them down 3-1. A late set play goal, assisted by Suhau Kuo and deflected in by Tyler Briggs, got them close at 3-2 but that was the final score. Game two was against the Elk Grove Heat. This was a fierce defensive struggle with both teams unable to find the net until later in the second half. Cameron Baker took a pass down the right side and crossed to Briggs, who put in front of the goal. He flicked one on over his head and caught the Heat GK in no man's land for a spectacular goal. Barron Kim was terrific at center back to lead the defense but the game was not decided until the last seconds when GK Lukas Moses punchedout a corner kick with 10 Elk Grove players bearing down on him. Game three was against the SF Alianza, and after a slow start that had the match at 0-0 at halftime, the Select ramped up the offense for a 3-0 final. Lorentz again led a teammate running on, this time Brandon Cohen, who went back across the grain to finish far post. A short while later, Zach Morrissey played a long ball out of the back to Cohen, who beat the SF trap and went to goal. He finished for the 2-0 lead. The final score came when Lorentz won the ball in traffic in the box and played a negative ball to Morgan Melendrez. Running on, Melendrez powered one on a line to the back of the net for the 3-0 lead. The game was abandoned in the 67th minute as SF began to accumulate red cards. Due to CYSA scoring rules, the Select will have to travel to Elk Grove this weekend to do PKs with Clovis for the second place finish determination.
Posted:3/14/12
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Ballistic United U12 Premier - NorCal State Cup Champions!
 The Ballistic United U12 Premier team, coached by Greg Rubendall, defeated Novato United in the NorCal State Cup Championship 5-1 this past Saturday, January 28 in Woodland, CA. Nico Lemoine ravaged the opponent on the day, scoring 4 goals on the day. The play of the game actually occurred early in the match. With the team up 1-0, Novato had an open net off a cross but center back Ben Blackfield raced to cover goalkeeper Tommy Kramer to make a sliding block of a sure goal. The team finished the season at the top of the age group statewide, but it wasn't an easy season.
Transitioning from 8v8 to 11v11 has many "growing pains," not the least of which is the introduction of an additional center back (4) and two holding midfield players (6 and 8). The team struggled early in the season, typified by their 0-3 performance at this years Santa Clara Sporting tournament and not advancing in the BUSC Summer Classic. However, a semifinal appearance at NHB and a championship win over last year's State Cup champion San Juan Lightning at the Davis Legacy Cup provided momentum to a vastly improving team.
After a heartbreaking 3-2 loss on a last second penalty kick versus the MVLA Pythons on the 2nd round of state cup, the U12 Premier team rebounded and won their final two group games versus Pajaro Valley and Newark to become an at-large team in the Super 8.
Coach Rubendall attributes the change in the season to two things - the CSU East Bay residential camp and a simple tactical concept. "The residential camp allowed us to gel as a team. They became a very tight-knit group after that experience." We went over "Building out of the Back" with a very simple concept that provided the time and space for the midfield and forward lines while making the field big and hard to defend for the opponent. Within the buildup from the goalkeeper (phase 1), the 3 and 4 (center backs) drop and open wide while the 2 and 5 (outside backs) step up into the midfield. The 6 or 8 (holding midfielders) drops back to build the ball while the 10 stays high and in the open midfield space. By consistently doing this, the field becomes too large for teams to defend individually and stretches the forward and midfield lines. We went over this concept just before the Legacy Cup and saw immediate results. This simple concept, along with the Ballistic United system of play and focus on individual technical proficiency, allowed us to hold the ball longer and make the opponent chase us around the field. Whenever we got into trouble, we had two goalkeepers who were very good with their feet and were able to keep the ball in case we needed to relieve pressure. We even started winning games in the last 10 minutes because the other teams were tired from defending so much. It truly was a success of the club philosophy as much as the camaraderie and teamwork we exhibited throughout the year.
The team consists of 16 players, each of which had a significant role in the success of this team throughout the year. Goalkeeper/defenders tommy Kramer and Andrew McGinty, defenders John Zhou, Nico Chavez, Ben Blackfield and Mark Molz, midfielders Harrison Kepp, Neal Inchauspe, Octavio Morales, Keshav Bhatnagar, and Adolfo Trujillo, and forwards Nick Mann, Tyler Self, Ian Slominski, Jack Harker, and Nico Lemoine.
Congratulations Boys!
Posted: 1/30/12
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Ballistic United U15 Premier Are 2011 NHB Cup Champs
 The Ballistic United Premier U15 side played in Flight 2 of the North Huntington Beach Cup soccer tournament over Labor Day Weekend. Platinum ranked NHB Cup features top sides from all over California and the Western Region. Coach Jerry Losson led his boys to four wins and a draw which was good enough to bring the cup home to Pleasanton, beating a very good MLS Chivas Youth Academy side in the final 2-0. Goal scorers for the weekend included Matthew Powell (3), Jared Siegel (2), Nigel McIntosh (1) Gabe Thurner (1), Cedric Abello (1), Collin Richardson (1) and Erik Johnson (1). The back defensive line, anchored by Goalie Kevin Hanan, Defenders Erik Johnson, Daniel Rodriguez, Brad Pilkington, Collin Alexander and Alex Lee held their opponents to just 3 goals in all 5 matches, including a clean sheet in the final. Midfielders Matthew Powell, Cam Casby, Collin Richardson and Ben Smedley distributed great balls throughout the weekend to forwards Jared Siegel, Nigel McIntosh, Cedric Abello and Gabe Thurner. The boys begin Regional Academy League (RAL) play Saturday September 10th against the San Jose Earthquake Juniors at 11:00; Val Vista Park. The RAL is the new elite level playing league featuring only the best soccer sides in Northern California.
Posted: 9/27/11
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| Last Updated:
April 30, 2013 |
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