We will be holding this Fundraiser at a different restaurant once a month.

This program will begin Sunday February 26, 2012 at BUFFALO WILD
WINGS in Blacksburg!! We are going to rock the BW3's house from
5:00PM-10:00PM, so bring your NRU spirit!

Come out, feast on some wings, catch a few game winning shots, or just enjoy
the company of your friends.

Attached is a Buffalo Wild Wings coupon that you will need to have with you
to show that your are an NRU member.

Please send out to friends and family.  The more people show with the
coupon, the more money we get to put towards on field fund!

The club had a thrilling weekend at the Winter Futsal Classic at TSP; there were exciting moments from all of our divisions, U9 through U18. To begin, our academy group had 4 grueling matches, facing not only each other, but a fierce Christiansburg side as well. Team 2 put together a valiant effort, led by Martin Forsman, to reach the final against the strong Red Devils. In the end the devils proved too strong, taking the first title of the tournament. The weekend of the middle group(U11/U12) could best be described as a roller coaster; Team 1 bolted out of the gates, with Daniel Salom and Addison Flack leading the way, beating their opponents in strong fashion. However, once the smoke settled, it was Team 2, with Clay Hopkins, Austin Bissell, Casey Hepburn, Matt Accai, Firas Dalloul, and Amiya Islam who held their resolve to beat the power house, in classic fashion. Coming from a loss in their first match to winning the title, showed real maturity and composure. Finally, our eldest group was one for the ages. Team 2 jumped out in front early - Ryan Hepburn and Cam Bissell really wanted that title. But Team 1, with Dan Friedberg and Gage Carroll, would not go away without a fight. To reach the final Team 1 was taken into overtime by the efforts of Team 3, which was sparked by the outstanding goalkeeping of Andrew Flack and the inspirational field play by Jessica Wollman. In overtime Team 1 proved to be worthy of the final match against the Goliath,in team 2. For the championship Team 2( Cam Bissell, Ryan Hepburn, Eli Vangilder, Matt Kessner, and Ben Fleming) prevailed as the victor, with quality combination passing and fluid communication, the title of the TSP Winter Futsal Classic was earned.
 
This was a great event, full of excitement, we can't wait to do it again. This event also acted as a perfect caveat for the upcoming FUTSAL LEAGUE - if you have yet to sign up, registration will remain open until 12/18. Do not miss your chance at this kind of fun!!

The club had a fantastic showing at the Richmond Strikers Capital Fall Classic last weekend.  Playing against some of the best competition in the state of Virginia, all of our teams showed extremely well and represented NRU with style.  Although not all of our teams ended up going through to the semi-finals and finals, all of them showed that this club continues to develop both players and teams!

We had Academy teams playing in Richmond as well for their first tournament experience.  It was great to have all of our players see what stiff competition is like, and all of our players were up for the challenge.  Both teams showed well and were in every game, even in matches against some of the best teams in Northern Virginia.  Just another testament to the fact that the Academy system is working !

The U11 Boys Skyline team put together a sensational performance at the Richmond Strikers Soccer Tournament; playing against some of the top competition in the state, the boys were able to come away with an admirable record of 1-0-2. Coach Pete Johnson deemed all members of the squad to be players of the week, as they fought as a unit the entire weekend. It was a great way to end the season.   There are exciting times ahead for our youngest travel side.

 The U12 Boys Skyline team had a good weekend the Richmond Fall Classic soccer tournament. Playing in a highly competitive division, the boys came away with a record of 2-1, just narrowly missing out on the final. There was a superb effort by the entire team, but a few stood out as truly exceptional: Camden Wise in goal, had one of the best performances of the tournament.  Austin Bissell, Justin Meacham, Brady Buchanan, and Noah Clark all played pivotal parts in the road to success. Finally, Bailey Prosser came away as the most outstanding player of the weekend, using his tenacity and hunger to lead the team to victory. His dynamic play on and off the ball created a rich style of futbal that encompasses the NRU standard. 

The U12 girls conjured up a valiant effort in the Richmond Capital Fall Classic, going up against some of the most fierce competition in the state! The girls gave it their all, coming away with a 1-2 record, which unfortunately, does not reflect their efforts. Although their record may not show it, the girls played some of the best soccer they have all year, with some outstanding play from Emily Southern and Georgia Halkidis. And one truly exceptional performance out of Ashlen Burch, who brought a pure winning effort, scoring the only goal against a tough SYA side. 

U13 Skyline team played really competitive teams in the Richmond tournament this weekend and competed really admirably, losing to state cup semi-finalists 3-0 in the semi-finals. All of the boys played well, especially against Strikers Elite, where we executed our game plan brilliantly, holding Strikers Elite closely for most of the game until they scored two really late goals.  The team received numerous compliments from opposing teams surprised on how competitive the boys were in such a tough division.

The U13 BRSL team had their best showing of the year winning all 4 matches and being named the Capital Fall Classic Champions!  Giving up only one goal in the entire tournament, the boys played with a passion and urgency that they showed glimpses of all season long.  Being the last tournament that Coach Lima would be at the helm, the boys came together and won him some more hardware for the trophy case as his many years of service to this club and numerous players throughout the years comes to a halt.  We won’t say to an end, as we hope Coach Lima will be only taking a break from coaching for a while.  Great job to the entire team!

The U14 boys were in by far the toughest bracket of the tournament.  Playing with only 12 players all weekend, they dug in and battled and stayed competitive in all of their matches. 

The U15 girls found themselves in some tough matches over the weekend.  Having to play with guest players all season due to low numbers, the girls have done a great job of finding results.  Although the results weren’t what they would have liked them to be, the girls did a great job of not giving up and playing the style of soccer that is enjoyable to watch…the NRU way.

The U16 boys team played some of their best soccer of the year in Richmond going 2-0-1.   Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to move on to the final losing out to one team on goal differential.  Having to play in an u16/17 division with a few 13 year olds on the roster, the team benefited from a few guest players.  All three guest players (Carson Wise, Matt Keaton, Matt Kessner) contributed greatly to the success of the group.  The entire team had a solid showing, but the back 4 made up of Jacob Hillyard, Brian Carroll, Michael Brenner and Robbie Tuosto gave up only 2 goals…one being a free kick from 19 yards out.  Gage Carroll also had a solid performance in goal all weekend.     

Congrats to all of our teams for finishing out a great season once again.  Everyone should be proud of their many accomplishments.  Everyone have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving! 

Quick note, the entire futsal tournament…for all ages has been pushed to Dec 8-11.  It would be great for all of our players to make it.

Congrats to Morgan Evans and Lucas Tuosto for being named this week’s Players of the Week!  Morgan scored 2 goals giving her team the win and the first place finish for the second year in a row.  Lucas has had a fantastic season and continued the trend over the weekend scoring his team’s equalizer in a back and forth match.  Congratulations to the both of them!

This weekend wrapped up league play for a majority of our teams.  Once again, our players had great seasons in both the BRSL and the Skyline leagues.  Success didn’t end there as most of our teams had fantastic results in mid season tournaments all over the state of Virginia.  Great job to all of the players, coaches, parents and volunteers that continue to make our seasons a success!

The U-11 boys won the league title in style on Saturday vs Valley AFC. Needing one point to win the league, the boys started well and Daniel Salom opened the scoring with a great strike from an acute angle. Playing good passing soccer, the boys added goals from Daniel, Firas Dalioul and Champ Humpreys  for a 4-0 halftime lead. In the second half, the boys played possession soccer and finished off the scoring with two goals in the last few minutes from Sture Forsman and Vedat Dilek. The boys now face their hardest challenge of the season when they play in Richmond on the 12/13th, before finishing with a trip to SOCA. Many congratulations to the players who got better and better as the season progressed.

The u-11 girls had a tough match this weekend losing 4-3. The got off to a slow start but finally settled down near the end of the first half.  There was one brilliant flash when they connected a couple of passes to switch the field and changed the point of attack.   Also, the girls finally had about 3 give and gos during a game!  Goals came from Maddie and Emma Kennedy, with Emma scoring twice. 

The U12 boys Skyline team capped off another great season in the Skyline league by going 1-1 this weekend, and 7-1-2 overall, winning their division.  They played a great game on Saturday beating Valley AFC 4-3, an early lead was opened up after Addision Flack received a pass from Jack Kleiber and beat the outside defender on the dribble and finished off a 1 v 1 with the keeper by burying it in the lower right corner.  Two more quick goals were scored when Bailey Prosser finished a ball off of a beautiful switch from Justin Mecham,  and Noah Clark finished a PK after being taken down from behind in the box, putting the boys up 3-0 at half.  To start the second half, Brady Buchannan finished off a ball crossed in from Noah Clark giving NRU a 4-0 lead.  From this point forward the boys were challenged by being put in different positions to continue to learn the whole game of soccer, and Valley AFC made a late run scoring 3 goals at the end of the second half, but NRU was able to hold on for the win.  Great season boys.

On Sunday, the boys played SOCA and lost 4-2, marking their first loss this season since the finals of the Twin City Classic.  The U12 boys played with two new players Zach Dalton and Sean Roeschke, who stepped up and help provide depth to a short bench for the day.  SOCA played a dominate first half, maintaining possession and gaining a 3-0 lead while NRU played on their heels as but still created a few chances.  To start the second half, Noah Clark finished off a beautiful 25 yard shot that went straight into the right upper 90 past an extended keeper.  This was followed up with an second goal that was created when Noah Clark looked for Zach Dalton making a far post run, as the ball was played across the 18 yard boxed and deflected off a SOCA defender causing an own goal bringing NRU within 1 goal of a tie.  The boys hung tough and created several chances to tie the game, but in the closing minutes a SOCA player played a long 30 yard shot that fell perfectly under the crossbar making the final 4-2.  Austin Bissel made a great play on the shot attempting to slap it over the crossbar, unfortunately he had to fight off an early morning sun that was directly behind the ball into his eyes, making any play on the ball extremely difficult.

The u-12 girls put together a great effort against Valley AFC this weekend.  Maintaining possession for much of the first half, the girls went down 1-0 after a trip in the box led to a penalty kick converted nicely by Valley.  The girls continued to play with energy and deservedly tied the score just before halftime on a well-placed 15-yard shot by Emily Southern.  In the second half, the NRU girls dominated play and kept the ball mostly on Valley's half of the field, using combinations to get around and past the Valley defense.  Ashlen Burch broke the tie on an 18 yard bomb that just snuck under the crossbar, and Georgia Halkidis iced the game with a shot taken just outside the box and driven low just inside the far post.  The defense played extremely well and did not allow many scoring opportunities in either half.  In addition to the goals, special play was offered by Shaida Campbell, earning "Header of the Game" for heading a high Valley punt before the bounce, and Anna Dresser, who displayed fantastic technique with her first touch turning away from pressure and into open space to keep possession for her team.  Tori Shimozono and Eliza Stowe offered great leadership in goal and were there to make the plays when needed.  With the win, the NRU girls have secured at least a tie for 2nd place for the season, after having finished in last place in Fall 2010 and second-to-last in Spring 2011.  Great job, ladies!

The U13 Skyline team had a successful weekend with 2 wins against Valley AFC and SOCA respectively.  In particular, the defensive backline played really well, conceding no goals in both matches. In a new formation, Ian Znorowski played two fine games in defensive midfield, as he controlled the tempo of the game from deep positions and gave good cover and support to the defensive line. He played two excellent games.  They handled Valley 5-0 and SOCA 6-0 finishing the season 8-1-1.  Great job out of the group once again!

The U13 girls team had a tough weekend losing to SOCA  4-1.  At times the girls put together some great play, however SOCA was just too much for them for the majority of the match.

The U13 Boys BRSL team had two games against Radford this weekend, and although they fell short tying the first, they continued to dominate possession and created chances throughout both matches.  Ethan was great in the first match being extremely reliable on defensive plays and his increasing leadership on field.  Once again in the second match, the boys had more shots on goal, or more precisely, more shots on their goalie, and managed to increase the overall ball possession from the day before.  The second half was very much like the first, a lot of scoring chances but poor finishing.  Joey Gabbard was great with his tireless work on defense that completely eliminated the counter-attack designs of their better players.  His desire to step up and challenge the ball proved to be a great factor in the lopsided possession during the game as they were never able to really get anything going offensively.  The times that he controlled the ball and pushed up with it under control were always seen as potentially dangerous and just fell short of producing the much needed and sought after goal(s).  Unlucky boys.  Keep up the good work!

The U14 Boys played a back and forth game with Valley AFC this weekend.   In the first half, the boys struggled with field conditions but were still able to control possession.  28 minutes into the first half Beau Houchins made a run down the left side, made a move to get in on the Valley keeper, took a shot which the keeper deflected right back to Beau who gladly finished the second chance.  The defense was holding Valley’s attack at bay, but at 35 minutes a shot was sent in which was deflected to the side by the NRU keeper, Michael Sampson.  In the scramble for the ball, the referee called a very soft foul on Michael which set a PK and the tying goal right at half time.  In the second half Valley came out strong and scored a quick goal to go up 2 to 1 as several NRU defenders lost their footing.  The team recovered quickly on a beautifully orchestrated goal set up from the back line to Harris Salom, who played a great ball to Lucas Tuosto on the right.  Lucas fired a shot from 25 yards out that sailed across the face of the goal over the outstretched hands of the keeper and into the upper 90.  From there both defenses held firm and the game ended in a 2 to 2 draw.  Overall a good back and forth match.

The U16 boys went up against a strong Valley squad this Saturday. The first half was full of brilliance out of the NRU boys, becoming dangerous on almost every offensive possession. Unfortunately, they were unable to put one of those threatening opportunities in the back of the net. The second started with a few more scares and finally Valley was able to break the stalemate. Our boys gave a valiant effort, but the attack of Valley was too much for the full 80 minutes.

The NRU U18 Girls ended the Skyline League with a first place finish for the second year in a row losing only one game in two seasons. The team had a memorable last game coming back from being down 2-1. Late in the game, Morgan Evans scored two goals that were virtually unstoppable shots for an NRU 3-2 victory over Roanoke Star. The team will end the season by competing in Raleigh's CASL college showcase November 18th-20th.

Congrats to all of our teams this year.   Most of our groups will be traveling this weekend for tournament play in Richmond and then will pick up play again in the National Bank Futsal Classic the first two weekends of December.  Good luck to all!

Unfortunately a majority of our games were canceled during the weekend due to a blast of winter weather, on Halloween weekend no less!  We were able to get in some great games on Sunday though with our boys BRSL teams going 3 and 0 against the competition and our U18 Girls team winning 3-2 over Salem in the Skyline league.

The U11 Boys BRSL team won a good back and forth game against PASA at Kipps this weekend 4 to 2. Eli Nachlas was the man of the match with 2 goals (the first one to put the boys up on a breakaway that came out of great positioning and the last one to ice the game with a few minutes left off a nice outside shot.) Matt Leo scored a great goal off a volley from a free kick that Chas Shelor put into the box. Chas also had a great game at sweeper, a position he doesn’t usually play. Daniel Kim also played very aggressive in the middle, something the group has been struggling with. Carter Brockman also played very well in goal in the first half and came out and scored a good goal in the second.  The team battled well as the score went back and forth.

The U12 Boys BRSL team finished their season off with a dominant victory 4-0 over the Danville Blast.  Cooper Neeble scored his first goal to start things off.  Zach Dalton scored twice in one of his best games this season.  Sean Roeschke finished things off with a fantastic shot from well outside the 18.  Overall the boys dominated play and possession and were rewarded with a shutout for their fine play.  The boys finished the BRSL in 3^rd place.  Great job boys.

The U13 Boys BRSL team had another dominating win.  Unfortunately the play didn’t result in quality scoring chances.  The team was able to beat Wythe Revolution by a score of 2-0, but had they been a bit sharper in the attacking 3^rd, it would have been a much larger margin of victory.  George Clement was fantastic on the weekend with his defensive prowess and his push into the offensive half as well.  He helped the team create their most dangerous chances and is leading by example.

After playing their best half of soccer yet this season, the NRU U18 girls defeated a competitive Salem Sabres team 3-2 Saturday evening under the lights. The game was won by strong possession from all over the field leading to many opportunities from right winger Morgan Evans. Hannah Duff's head scored first from India Helmer's cross, and Kim Shaver was back in form with two amazing goals to solidify a win.

An undefeated weekend is something truly to be happy about, but let’s remember that the development of the players and teams over this entire season is the real reason for all of our excitement.  Our players continue to move forward with their abilities on the field and that is something that all of us should be proud of. 

Don’t forget to sign up for the National Bank Winter Futsal Classic at www.techsportsplex.com!  Do it today.  While you are there, sign up for the Futsal League as well.

Playing three years above her age group has proved to be the right choice for freshman Jane Everett as she consistently controls midfield play. This past weekend she again provided the essential ingredients for the U18 team's skyline victory. Even after being 5-0 up, she continually battled for every 50/50 ball as though each minute were crucial to hold on to the win. Jane was most instrumental in her ability to switch the point of our attack, which led to most of our goal scoring opportunities.

Will played one of his most complete and team oriented games this weekend.  Displaying a proper attitude towards practice & games while performing at a high level regardless of position.  Great job to the both of you!

It was another good weekend for the club.  This time a majority of our teams traveled to Lynchburg, VA to take on CVU while our BRSL teams stayed more local playing matches at home.  We had some great results against some very good opponents and for that our players should be proud.  For those that may have not been able to receive the result they were after, they should keep their head's up as a lot of improvement continues to go on here at the club.

The U11 Girls won their game this weekend 4-1.  The girls are starting to get pretty much all the positions except for maybe the outside midfield spot and it showed in this match as players played multiple spots.  They continued to improve throughout the match on their passing technique and are working towards stringing together multiple passes in a row. They defended CVU well allowing very few chances on goal.

The U-11 Boys skyline team assured themselves of at least tied for top spot in the league with a 5-1 victory at CVU.  Starting slowly, the boys began to take control as the game went on, finding goals hard to come by against a resolute defense. Finally, Vedat Dilek broke the deadlock with just a few minutes left in the first half. In the second half the U-11's took total control, scoring four more goals: two by Daniel Salom, 1 by Firas Dalloul, and 1 Sture Forsman. It was a good performance, but not one of their best games. In all, 9 players have scored goals for the team this season proving that the success has been consistently team driven.

The u-11 Boys BRSL team had a tough match against CSC over the weekend falling 4-1.  They continue to see glimpses of good soccer from the group, but have yet to put it all together in an entire match.  The improvement is vast however.

The u12 Girls match with CVU was a success, measured in a different way.  Using the first half as an additional means of development, most of the NRU girls played out of their normal positions, and some confusion on the new back line led directly to CVU punching in an early goal.  From there, the girls adjusted and settled down into their assigned roles for the half, gaining confidence as play continued and generating some good scoring chances but remained down 0-1 at the end of the half.  In the second half, the NRU girls played more in their positions of strength and dominated possession throughout the half as CVU packed it in defensively.  Generating many scoring opportunities, the NRU girls finally equalized with twelve minutes remaining on a goal by Georgia Halkidis, and the match ended in a 1-1 tie.  Key players for NRU were Georgia Halkidis in the second half, disrupting the CVU defense with many runs from the striker position; Shaida Campbell, who made a couple of key saves as goalkeeper to thwart CVU's counterattacks, and Meghan Shelton, who repeatedly got past the CVU defense from the outside midfield position and generated many good crosses.

U12 boys  BRSL team played in Giles on Saturday and fell 5-1.  The defense has struggled at times these past few weeks, especially with due to illness of a few players.  The boys have seen dramatic improvement this year and have been competitive in every game.  They have one more game Sunday against Danville.

The u12 boys Skyline team got back on the winning track this weekend at CVU.  The match was back and forth for much of the game with both teams having their share of chances.  The boys lacked the final touch during many of their build-ups throughout the first half until Bailey Prosser struck a free kick from about 10 yards over half field.  He managed to put his shot on goal and Clay Hopkins crashed the net to slot the rebound home with his right foot.  The game went into the half with a 1-0 score line.  NRU came out in the second half in a 3-3-1 formation and the boys were more comfortable with this alignment.  Consequently, they possessed the ball better and had more chances.  Marco Whyte finished off a shot from just outside the 18 about 10 minutes into the 2nd half to give NRU a 2-0 lead.  From this point on, both teams had several chances, but strong defending from Justin Mecham, Austin Bissell, Nic Ball, and Matthew Acciai & great goalkeeping from Camden Wise helped the team to its first shut out in the past few weeks.

The u13 Girls team had a tough time over the weekend with CVU.  Although down a few goals, the girls never quit and kept trying to push each other though out the match, falling short however when the final whistle blew.

The u13 boys skyline team played a solid match against CVU this weekend, winning 3-2.  A much improved CVU made the team work really hard for the victory, though the boys stepped up a gear each time it was needed in the game. There was a fifteen minute period in the first half where the boys played their best soccer of the season, with the team emphasis on pass and move implemented excellently.

Lane Wilkins started a game for the first time and played really well. Austin Brown continued his fine vein of form, scoring two expertly taken goals and generally being effective the whole game.

The u13 boys BRSL had a fantastic match in against Roanoke this weekend…in  many ways, most important of which was how the way the boys came together and played as a team. They had a variety of important contributions to the success of the game from a variety of different players at different moments of the match. All boys should be really proud of the way they started to look out after each other on the pitch, covering when needed, talking it up, and especially motivating each other when needed. The result of this effort was Roanoke’s inability to connect passes on our end of the field; the boy’s sense of urgency to step up to them defensively caused errant passes on their end and quick recovery of the ball for our counter-attacks.  It was a great match as the boys found 2 goals to secure a victory.  Great job boys.

The U14 boys team played an energetic CVU squad this weekend.  CVU put in two early goals, both from about 25 yards out.  CVU’s defense held firm the entire game and the NRU boys could not organize an effective attack.  Final score was 0-2 in favor of CVU.

The u14 Girls team drew with CVU this weekend 0-0.  Isabella Blankenmyer had once again a standout match.  Bella repeatedly beat the outside midfielder and defender for CVU on 1v1s to create fantastic opportunities on the attacking game.   She had an amazing shot on goal in the latter minutes of the second half.  The CVU keeper made an equally amazing diving save to keep the ball out of the goal.  Our team has been working very diligently on playing out of pressure, and Bella worked extremely well with Sophia Thompson on the left side of the field to work out of pressure and create more space and attacking opportunities for the team. All in all, the team worked hard to put the principles of playing out of pressure to use on the field.  They showed composure and patience on the ball, and for the most part made excellent choices about where to play the ball.  This is a vast improvement from the last time the girls played this team.

The U15G team lost a hard fought battle against CVU, 0-2.  The girls and CVU played about even in the first half, with each team taking eleven shots.  Unfortunately, CVU slipped one in during a scrum in the box close to the end of the half.  In the second half, with the ref calling few fouls, the game got very physical, but the girls continued to play tough.  CVU scored again, and NRU was not able to come back, though they created several scoring opportunities and played hard to the end.

This last weekend at CVU, the U16 boys put together their best first half of soccer; unfortunately, in the second half, CVU took advantage of their lean bench, stealing the win. The boys were doing well to combine through the midfield, getting dangerous on almost every offensive possession. Defensively, the team stayed strong, apart for a few individual breakdowns. Keeper, Gage Carroll, was the man of the match, making save after save to keep them in the game. Tough defeat to stomach, but the boys held their heads high; they will look to get winning results in the two weeks leading up to the season ending tournament in Richmond, November 12-13.

The United U18 girls continue to dominate the Skyline league with their 5-0 win over CVU. The team was led by defender Haven Leland's game winning, one-touch volley goal from 20 yards out, and Jane Everett's superb midfield play.