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.