April 11, 2009 – The table is set for the Challenge Round of the 2009 FYSA State Cup and Kendall SC has placed the second most teams in the Round of 16 (9) of all the clubs in the state. Once again the club has the most Boys teams in Florida competing in the final stage of the championship – eight teams, including the U19B White. No other club from Miami-Dade County has more than four teams remaining in the state cup competition and Kendall SC has the same number of teams as all the other local clubs combined.

The last two additions to the group are the U14B White and U17B White, who swept their Second Round matches to improve Kendall SC’s record in the competition to 23 wins, 7 ties and 4 losses. The U17B White allowed no goals in wins over last year’s Final Four team, Jacksonville Youth Soccer (4-0) and perennial foe, West Pines United (3-0). For their part the U14B White had little trouble advancing with a 6-0 victory over Brandon Flames and a 3-1 defeat of Sunrise SC.

A testament to the depth of talented players at the club is that two teams qualified for the Round of 16 in two age groups – U16B and U17B, and the fact that the ’92 and ’90 Miami FC Kendall teams that play in the US Soccer Development Academy program are not even allowed to compete in the FYSA State Cup.

The Round of 16 will be played on April 18 and 19 in a single elimination format to determine the teams that will advance to the Final Four on May 16-17 in Wellington.

The U13 Girls, U13 Boys and U14 Boys will be playing their Challenge Round games at Amelia Earhart Park in Hialeah. The U13G White will battle FC America Omni at 2:00 pm on April 18. A victory would pit them against the winner of the Pinecrest Premier Blue vs. Florida Rush Nike.

The U13B White will play Clearwater Chargers at 10:00 am. They could face the winner of the South Florida Elite vs. Brandon Flames match-up in the quarterfinals.

The U14B White will face off against local rival Team Boca White at 6:00 pm. The teams split their previous two meetings this season with Team Boca winning 2-1 in December and Kendall SC taking the second game 2-1 in the SFUYSA playoff championship. The winner of what promises to be a challenging match will meet the winner of the FC Sarasota and Strictly Soccer game.

Five Kendall SC teams will be playing in Tampa’s Ed Radice Park. The defending state champions, U15B White, meet up with Island Coast Soccer at 5:00 pm. Next in line would be the winner of the Jacksonville Youth Soccer and Gainesville Soccer Alliance game.

The U16B Blue play first at 10:15 am in a tough match against the defending state champions, SAA-Real Madrid. A win would propel them to a contest against the winner of HC United and First Coast Kyx. The U16B White face Gainesville at 2:45 pm. The road gets no easier if they have to meet up with the winner of the Weston Fury Premier and RSL Florida game.

The two U17 boys teams both play at 10:15 am. The U17B White plays against last year’s state semifinalist, Florida Soccer Alliance, while the U17B Blue play South Florida Elite. If both Kendall SC teams win the club is guaranteed a Final Four slot since they would have to play each other in the quarterfinals.

The U16G White will be playing at the Palm Bay Regional Park near Melbourne. Their match against the Brandon Flames starts at 3:30 pm. If they hope to improve on their quarterfinals performance of last year they will not only have to win that game, but also defeat the winner of the Ponte Vedra and Leg A-Z match.

The U19 girls and boys do not start play until May 16 and 17. The U19G White will be grouped with Sarasota Storm, Port St. John and the Hudson Lady Cobras in that round. The top two teams will advance to the Final Four.

The U19B White face a strong field in Jacksonville Jaguars, Strictly Soccer and West Pines United. The winners of the three groups and the best second place finisher will advance to the Final Four.