SUN SHINES ON DAY TWO OF DICK'S SPORTING GOODS TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS
(January 03, 2010)
With clear skies and cool temperatures, day two of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Tournament of Champions (TOC) continued Saturday. Although the ten fields of play continued to dry throughout the day from Friday morning’s downpours, it did not slow the action whatsoever. The second of the three-day tournament at Wesley Chapel District Park was highlighted by several exciting games as each bracket narrowed to its final four.
Halfway through the day, nearly half of the 53 participating teams continued to compete for national championships in three age categories – Under 15, High School Rising Stars and High School Elite. By Sunday afternoon, one team in each division will be crowned “the best” – and have bragging rights for the next 12 months.
DAY TWO RESULTS
UNDER 15 – This year is the just the first for the U15 division at the TOC, but that hasn’t stopped some very ambitious young teams from competing hard for their respective title. In this very balanced, 14-team division, two Maryland teams have advanced to Sunday morning’s national semifinal round – including top seed T2 Storm. They eliminated Burning River from title contention on Saturday. The second U15 seed, Lake Norman (NC), took out the Ft. Meyers Fury 7-4 on their way to advancing to a semifinal matchup with the second Maryland team to advance – FCA. On their way to a seat at the table, FCA knocked out Tar Heel (NC) 14-5.
RISING STARS - In the hunt for this division’s national title, top seeds in three pools continued their quest for wins. Copperheads Black (GA), the top seed in pool one, advanced past Florida Elite to claim their spot in the next round. There, they’ll face Leading Edge (NJ) who earned their birth in the semis by knocking off a quality Krunch squad on Saturday afternoon. The bottom half of the Rising Stars bracket matches Mesa Fresh 2012 (PA) (the top seed in pool 3) against Burning River – the Ohio club coached by Woody Calleri. Burning River, the top seed in pool two, beat the Palm Beach Storm (FL) 11-3 to advance to Sunday.
HIGH SCHOOL ELITE – The 26-team bracket has been whittled down to the final four. The prestigious division, that has been won by Canadian teams since the tournament’s debut in 2006, has a one-in-four chance of keeping that streak intact. Three US teams will do their best to end that run and bring the national championship to the States. The Rough Riders team from Maryland scored an impressive win by knocking off Krunch 14-2 and advancing to Sunday’s championship round. Fellow American teams in the final four include coach Dan Altschuler’s Mesa Fresh 2010 (PA) club and the highly-talented Warriors squad (from North Carolina) who disposed of Edge JR Elite (ON) and Rebel Elite Philly (PA) on their respective roads to the semis. The lone Canadian team battling for the Elite title will be Edge SR Elite (ON), who took out the Bulldogs LC (CT) 11-7 to advance to Sunday’s final round.
Sunday’s consolation and championship action begins at 8am. For tournament photos, news and all the latest updates, stay tuned to our website.
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