Congratulations to the San Diego Soccer Club's U13 team, the Sand Blasters, who are Beach Soccer Jam Champions for 2011. The team won the U14 bracket playing up.

The winners for the GU14, the SDSC Sand Blasters GU13 beat the SDFC GU14 premier team.  All the girls deserve recognition as they fought hard to win and played well.  Especially one of the players who broke her toe in the final game!

"It was great to see both SDSC teams competing in the final for the gu14 bracket at Beach Soccer, and I am very proud of both teams for reaching the final. It was competitive but most important lots of fun for both team, these are both of teams I will be coaching next season, should be lots of fun," said Raffi Ruotolo, Director of Coaching Girls for SDSC.

Champions and Finalists

Girls U14

1st Place SDSC Sand Blasters (U13)

2nd Place SDSC -FC

This wininng team is Coach Raffi Rutolo's new team composed of a blend of PQ Premier players and his FC San Diego team.

Here is the roster:

Former PQ Premier GU13 Red Players: Hailey Rittershofer, Kelly Danker, Meg Barber, and Taylor Richards

Former FC San Diego GU13 Players: Devin Skoll, Bianca McFarland, and Courtney Strode

Guest Goalie: Bernice Clemente

Parent coach Craig Danker said, "I am very proud of our kids as a parent and as a SDSC board member.  Our girls were playing against a talented group of Premier level U14 FC San Diego Sockers kids who, quite frankly, had taken it to us 4-0 in bracket play." "I think the FC San Diego Sockers girls were a little complacent to start the game and we came out with intensity and scored early."

"The FC girls began to press and the game got physical which was not good for our younger, smaller team, but our girls played tough and hung on for the victory.  I think this speaks well for the newly formed San Diego Soccer Club, as this group of girls was an even blend of FC Sockers U13 girls and PQ Premier U13 girls who have had very little experience playing together.  If you saw them play, however, you would have thought they had been playing together for years.  This bodes well for Coach Raffi as he prepares them for the SCDSL U14 season."

The Soccer Beach Jam and SoccerNation wish to congratulate the SDSC Sand Blasters! 

Special thanks to Jenny Rittershofer for providing team information.

Photo Credit: Aaron Jaffe