The Beachside Soccer Club boys 15- and 16-year-old and under team will travel to Dallas to take on Major League Soccer team F.C. Dallas in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy competition Wednesday.
The team, which is coached by Mickey Kydes, is comprised of highly talented players from southern Connecticut and Westchester County and plays in US Soccer’s Development Academy League.
The Town of Greenwich has two standout athletes on the team, as both Tyler Shaver and Harrison Tramposch will be joining Beachside in the Lone Star State.
“We’re so excited to be playing in the quarterfinals in Dallas after winning our group in Indianapolis,” said Shaver, who is also on the U.S. National U-15 team. “It’s an honor being a member of one of the top eight teams in the country. Mickey has trained us well and has driven commitment and dedication from the team. We feel very prepared.”
The Development Academy League showcases the highest standard of boys youth soccer in America. Only 77 select clubs nationwide, including the youth teams from the MLS, compete in its year round season. All Academy players are regularly evaluated by the United States Soccer Youth National Team Scouts.
Beachside finished the regular season with a 15-5-9 record, which put them in 2nd place in Northeast Division and earned them a place in the national playoffs, along with 31 of the nation’s best teams.
They traveled to Indianapolis, Indiana where they faced three difficult games against Dallas Texans (Texas), Bethesda Olney (Maryland), and Orlando City (Florida).
Beachside won two games and tied the third, which guaranteed them a spot in the quarterfinals.
The winner of the match between Beachside and FC Dallas will go onto the final four, which will be held in Carson, California at the U.S Soccer National Training Center from July 16-18.
“Beachside has been like a second home for me over the past six years and I cannot think of a more friendly, yet extremely professional environment to be a part of,” said Easton’s Caner Snover, who has played for Beachside since he was 11-years-old. “Mickey has always cared about his players and his number one priority is to help them be the best they can be not only technically, but mentally as well. I have never felt as strongly as this about a group of guys, and, to compete at the level we are competing at right now — it’s incredible how far this club has come.”
Beachside Soccer Club’s Founder and Director of Coaching, Mickey Kydes, believes that to be in the final eight is an immense achievement for the boys on the team and for the entire Beachside Soccer Club.
“I am very proud of them indeed,” Kydes said. “For the work they have put in, the style of soccer they play, and the character they have shown in overcoming very strong opponents. Most the teams still in the competition are MLS clubs drawing players from massive metropolitan areas. We serve a smaller population, but these boy’s success shows what can achieved by encouraging and working with players from our community over the long term.”
In addition to Shaver and Tramposch, members of the team include Djimon Johnson, Sean Martin and Ahdan Tait of Bridgeport, Chester Glenn and Joe Pravder of Westport, Ryan Knuth of Milford, Joao Avila of North Haven, Altin Celaj of Brookfield, Jonathan Filipe, William Harned of Darien, Dan Laranetto of Bridgewater, Nicholas Petridis of Norwalk, Ryan Ruff of Trumbull, Caner Snover of Easton, John Denis of Yorktown Height, Noah Lawrence of Mount Vernon, N.Y. and Alan Hass of Armonk, N,Y.
“It’s great to be on an Academy team that is committed to challenging its players to progress individually and also to build a cohesive team that can compete with the best in the nation,” said Denis, a member of the U.S. National U-17 squad. “Mickey is a great teacher, has great tactical vision and the experience to make the right adjustments during a match to yield a win. We kept our composure and we battled our way despite being the underdogs: I am so proud of my team.”
