W-20 News Release
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
TAMPA, Fla. – The schedule for the 2013 W-20 Championship presented by Nike was announced today, with the event set to open Thursday at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. The six qualifying teams have been drawn into two groups of three for the group stage, with each team playing a crossover game against a randomly selected opponent from the other group.
Teams will check in on Wednesday, July 24 with group play beginning Thursday morning and continuing through Saturday. The W-20 Championship final will take place at 9 a.m. ET on Sunday, July 28 at IMG Academy's Soccer Complex.
For the first time, all W-20 Championship matches will be available on video through Tourbeau Sports as group stages matches will be available live and on-demand with audio commentary, and final will be available for free on USLNation.com.
GROUP A
Kalamazoo Kingdom
The Kalamazoo Kingdom won the Midwest Division in impressive fashion, scoring 38 goals and conceding only five all season. Olivia Emery, a rising sophomore at Grand Valley State, is one of four players for Kalamazoo who scored at least four goals this season.
Carolina Elite Cobras
The W-20 Cobras join their W-League counterpart in Bradenton this weekend for a chance to claim two titles for the club. Multiple players were key contributors to both the W-League and W-20 teams’ success throughout the season. Stephanie DeVita and Savannah McCaskill helped the W-20 team secure a second-place finish in the South Atlantic Division, and then a week later helped the W-League team qualify for the final four, behind DeVita’s game-winning assist.
Ottawa Fury
Ottawa rounds out Group A, and despite being a young team, finished first in the New England Division. Seventeen-year-old Delphine Laroche has three goals this season for the Fury as they look to build on last year’s championship run, where they finished second in their group behind D.C. United, which lost 1-0 in the finals.
GROUP B
Lake Norman SC
Leading Group B is Lake Norman, which won the South Atlantic Division against Carolina Elite by only three points. Wake Forest transfer Megan Curan will be the key to controlling Lake Norman’s midfield. She is the only current college player on the roster and has two goals this season.
Force Football Club Academy
Oakland University star Kyla Kellermann leads Force Football Club, which finished second in the Midwest Division. Kellermann, a rising junior, was the Summit League Offensive Player of the Year at Oakland and led Force in scoring, averaging more than a goal a game.
Fredericksburg Impact
Fredericksburg also returns from last year’s championship and hopes to use its experienced players to claim this year’s W-20 title. Nine players on Fredericksburg’s roster competed for its W-League team this season, including goalkeeper Jesse McGinley, who played more than 800 minutes in net for the W-League team.
The W-20 Championship found a new home in 2012 at the world’s largest and most advanced sports training institution, IMG Academy, and will be held there for the next several years, providing an amazing opportunity for some of the best talent on the continent.
For more than 30 years, IMG Academy has helped countless youth, adult, collegiate and professional athletes reach their full potential in and out of sport. IMG Academy alumni have collectivity won more than 900 tournaments, 107 major championships, 63 MVP awards, 131 All-Star honors, 32 Olympic gold medals, 29 world championships, 5 national titles, and 3 Heisman trophies.
2013 W-20 Championship presented by Nike
At IMG Academy
Bradenton, Florida
Group Play
Thursday, July 25
Group A – Ottawa Fury vs. Kalamazoo Kingdom, 10 a.m. ET
Group B – Fredericksburg Impact vs. Lake Norman SC, 10 a.m. ET
Crossover – Carolina Elite Cobras vs. Force Football Club, 10 a.m. ET
Friday, July 26
Group A – Carolina Elite Cobras vs. Kalamazoo Kingdom, 10 a.m. ET
Group B – Fredericksburg Impact vs. Force Football Club, 10 a.m. ET
Crossover – Ottawa Fury vs. Lake Norman SC, 10 a.m. ET
Saturday, July 27
Group A – Carolina Elite Cobras vs. Ottawa Fury, 10 a.m. ET
Group B – Force Football Club vs. Lake Norman SC, 10 a.m. ET
Crossover – Fredericksburg Impact vs. Kalamazoo Kingdom, 10 a.m. ET
Championship
Sunday, July 28, 9 a.m. ET