FC KANSAS CITY YOUTH ACADEMY DOMINATES THE MISSOURI STATE CUP
FC Kansas City’s youth academy teams swept all four divisions at the Fall State Cup
KANSAS CITY, MO. (November 16, 2024) – History was made this weekend as FC Kansas City’s youth academy teams swept all four divisions at the Fall State Cup at the Lou Fusz Soccer Complex in Maryland Heights, Missouri. U-15 Ristov, U16 Pink Panthers Elite, U17 Forte Elite and U18 Vardar all won their division championships.
“We are very proud of our high school girls and even more proud of our club’s continued progression in building top-tier quality players,” Club Director Brad Childers said. “This historical event is a bi-product of doing things right and well for a long time. This could be an indicator and beginning of something very special that many good people are in the process of building in this Kansas City club.”
This is the first time FC Kansas City has won all four divisions of the Missouri Fall High School Girls State Cup. It also marks the first time a single club has taken all age groups in Fall State Cup since 2024.
Led by FC Kansas City’s Assistant Coach Goran Karadzov, U18 Vardar kicked off the finals on Sunday to claim their first State Cup title after falling short in previous years. Following two tough matches during the first game of pool play and in the semifinals against St. Louis Scott Gallagher Premier, Vardar beat Sporting Columbia with an overtime 2-1 victory with both goals coming from Allison Mallott.
“Hard work pays off if you practice and give it your 110 percent,” Coach Karadzov said. “Sooner or later success is going to come and I am really proud of this group.”
After conquering the first title, both the U15 Ristov and U16 Pink Panthers Elite took the fields against the Ozark Premier Soccer Club and the AFA Fillies respectively.
Ristov reached the final after a nail biting pool play on November 6-8 where a 3-0 victory and another game’s draw put Coach Vasil Ristov’s team in the semifinals followed by a 2-0 win over St. Louis Scott Gallagher Premier victory to advance to the final.
After a hard fought 2-2 score, Ristov found the back of the net four times in overtime to win it 6-2 with a hat trick from Lily Farkas, a brace from Taylor Dolt and a goal from Emma Willard.
“These girls [U15 Ristov] are a very ambitious group of young ladies who have worked very hard in the last several years to enjoy the success they have today,” Coach Ristov said. “A year and a half ago, we lost in the finals but our motto was ‘finish it’ and we did, this time our motto was ‘repeat’ and we did. Now we want to go back to Regionals and try to lift that trophy.”
At the same time, Coach Tim Richardson’s Pink Panthers Elite lifted the trophy for the fourth year in a row with a 3-2 victory over returning State Cup finalists AFA Fillies. The U16 team scored all three tallies in the first half with a brace from Hallie Klanke and a goal from Kassidy Newsome. However, the Fillies nearly tied it in the second stanza with two goals but fell short in the end.
“We are very proud of our team’s accomplishments, it’s an honor to represent FCKC and Kansas City in the State Cup,” Coach Richardson said. “Kudos to all of our players for their hard work in practice and performance in our matches. I also want to thank all the team parents for their support.”
Last but not least, U17 Forte Elite coached by Brad Childers earned its first title in four years after meeting heartbreak in the semifinals in the last three State Cups despite attending the USYSA Regionals and Nationals. With goals from Kayla Deaver, Kassi Ginther, Nina Stine and Liz Mann, Forte Elite defeated Sporting JB Marine Schneider 4-0 in the division championship.
“The girls learned a hard lesson in last year’s State Cup. After going 9-0 on the top tier Midwest Regional League, losing in the semifinals taught us a lesson of respecting how everything must be constantly earned,” Childers said. “That event fueled us to winning our region this summer then advancing all the way to taking third in the US Youth Nationals.”
Next up, all four State Cup winners will head to the US Youth Regionals, which will be hosted by the Indiana Youth Soccer Association at the Grand Park Sports in Westfield, IN from June 24-29, 2024. In case of winning, the teams would then advance to the US Youth Nationals hosted by The Toyota Soccer Center in Frisco, TX from July 1-5, 2024.
Also, after a successful performance in last year’s Regionals, U17 Forte Elite and U16 Pink Panthers Elite will be competing in the US Youth National League from December 3-6 in North Carolina and from December 31 to January 3 in Orlando, FL.