South OC Soccer Club Crowned National Champs

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hris Tellez heads the ball during the national tournament.
hris Tellez heads the ball during the national tournament.

Laguna Beach High senior Christopher Tellez and some of south Orange County’s top prep soccer players edged a team from Cincinnati 1-0 in overtime to win the U.S. Youth Soccer U17 National Championship on Sunday, July 28 in Overland Park, Kan.

The National Champion U17 West Coast Futbol Club, coached by Neil Armourf, is made up of boys under the age of 17 from San Clemente, Capo Valley, Servite, JSerra, Laguna Beach, Edison, El Toro, and other south Orange County high schools.

Tellez has been playing soccer for 12 years and was a member of the Laguna Beach club team that won the 2011 AYSO U14 national tournament.

As a starting forward and co-captain for the Breakers, Tellez scored his team’s first goal and assisted on another in Laguna’s shocking 3-0 upset of eventual champ Saddleback in the league opener for both teams.

Tellez with trophy
Tellez with trophy

He was named first team all-Orange Coast league as a junior, helping Laguna earn a CIF wild card berth after going 4-3-3 in league and 9-4-5 overall last season.

Tellez and his West Coast teammates followed up a first round tie (1-1) against the OBGC Rangers of Maryland with back-to-back shutouts of North Carolina’s TUSA Gold (6-0) and New Jersey’s PDA McGeough (1-0) to earn a spot in the finals. In four tournament games, West Coast outscored their opponents 8 to 1.

The title game was a rematch against the team from Cincinnati that had beaten West Coast 3-0 last November. The U18 West Coast Futbol Club also won the national title, making them the only soccer club to have not only have two teams in the tournament but also have two champions.

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