Houstonians Futbol Club Wins 2015 Southern Regional Championships (HFC 01B)

Houston, TX, June 30, 2015 --(PR.com)-- The Houstonians 2001 Under-14 Boys (HFC ’01) qualified for the 2015 Southern Region Championships as the South Texas state champion. The HFC ’01 team drew a qualification pool with the South Texas finalist (Barcelona), the Tennessee state champion (Lobos), and the nation’s top ranked team and North Texas state champion (FC Dallas). Although the HFC ’01 team had a letdown loss versus Barcelona, the back-to-back wins against Lobos and FC Dallas secured the pool’s top seed entering the elimination rounds. The HFC ’01 team eliminated the Tennessee finalist (TSC-19) and Oklahoma finalist (Westside Alliance) in the quarterfinal and semifinal matches, respectively. The HFC ’01 team faced the Georgia state champion and the 2014 Southern Region champion (GSA) in the Under-14 Boys title match.

A strong start to the second half helped the HFC ‘01 team claim the Under-14 Boys title with a 3-2 win over a GSA side that had not lost a match in 18 months. Following a scoreless first half, Iván Bastidas put the South Texas champions up in the 46th minute with an upper-90 strike from outside the box. Teammate Abdel Galaviz added an “Olimpico” goal five minutes later to give HFC ’01 a 2-0 lead, and Adrian Cedillo stretched the advantage to three goals with a diving header in the 55th minute. GSA managed two last-minute goals in the 70th and 72nd minute, but it was not enough as the HFC ’01 team held on for the 3-2 victory and will represent the Southern Region at the 2015 National Championships in July.

The US Youth Soccer National Championship Series is the country's oldest and most prestigious national youth soccer tournament, providing approximately 185,000 players on more than 10,000 teams from US Youth Soccer's 55 State Associations the opportunity to showcase their soccer skills against the best competition in the nation while emphasizing teamwork, discipline and fair play.

The National Championships cap a yearlong series of competitions, US Youth Soccer National Championship Series, for boys and girls teams in multiple age groups as teams earn their way from the top teams in their state to the regional championship tournaments. US Youth Soccer State Champions, US Youth Soccer Regional League Champions and selected wildcard teams are eligible to compete in one of four US Youth Soccer Regional Championships. The champions in the Under-13 through Under-19 age groups from each regional event will converge in the finals in Tulsa, Okla.

The US Youth Soccer National Championships will consist of US Youth Soccer Regional Champions in the Under-13 through Under-19 Boys and Girls age groups as well as the US Youth Soccer National League qualifiers in the Under-14 through Under-18 Boys and Girls age groups to complete the field of 96 teams.

The Good Ol' Boys from Houston will be there to represent HFC 01.