Local youth teams head into final day of group matches at U.S. Youth Soccer National Championship

Needing a win to stay in the hunt after a tough loss to open group play on Tuesday, Villanova Soccer Academy’s 2007 boys team did just that on Wednesday with a 1-0 victory over ASDSC Doral SC.

The win puts them within striking distance of the semifinals in a match against group leader Total Futbol Academy. VSA, which is affiliated with 1776 United, is one point behind Total Futbol after picking up the win and even on points with Allegiance FC Alliance for second place. The top two teams will advance to the semifinal.

Five other local teams posted victories on Wednesday, including a second straight win for the one defending national champion in the bunch, Real Jersey FC’s 2004 boys. They won their second match in a row by a 2-1 score line and are in a great spot to advance to the semifinal with any result against Sparta United on Thursday in a match that will be streamed live at noon.

On the other side of the 2004 boys bracket, PA Dominion, which lost to Real Jersey FC in the final in 2019, picked up a late game winner to defeat Germantown Legends 1-0 and stay in the hunt for one of their two spots.

Keystone FC’s U18 girls team is on the top of their group with six points after a 1-0 win over FC Evolution Cleveland on Wednesday.

Philadelphia SC Coppa 2005 girls picked up an all important win — 2-1 — over Cincinnati United that put them into second place on three points.

Real Jersey’s 2006 girls team also won 2-0 after a draw in their first game to move into a tie with Solar SC, their Thursday opponent, for top of their group on four points. Penn FC 2004 girls are in a similar spot tied with CFC Red Star at the top of their group on four points after a 2-2 draw with them on Wednesday.

Much will be decided and the scenarios are plentiful but there’s a good chance multiple teams from our area will be moving on with results on Thursday.

For the full standings and streaming information for Thursday’s matches, visit www.usyouthsoccer.org/national-championships.