During their recent participation in the prestigious Disney College Showcase Team Chicago Academy-Santos and Internacional attracted a very impressive following of college coaches scouting their games. Between the two teams they attracted 126 colleges – of which 82 were NCAA Division I schools.

Most of the colleges were represented at multiple Santos and Internacional games, and their presence has generated a tremendous amount of interest in the Team Chicago players. The Disney College Showcase was a huge success for Team Chicago both on and off the field.

Please welcome Peter Bierman. Born 1/7/13 at 3:46PM. 8 lbs 13 oz, 21 in.
Congratulations Coach Brian, Coach Anny and big brother Ben.

Team Chicago Academy-Santos and Botafogo both claimed Disney College Showcase titles today. For Santos it was the second year in a row they claimed the Disney title.

Santos faced ISA from New York in the U17 final which proved to be a very tight and physical contest. Heather Handwork got Santos on the board first after a great, mazy run midway through the first half. Madi Harris and Katie Ciesiulka assisted on the goal. Unfortunataly, ISA was able to strike back just before the half.

Santos took control from the start of the 2nd half and created a number of good chances, but unfortunately hitting the crossbar was as close as they came. The game went into 2 5-minute overtime periods, but Santos only needed 90 seconds for Kristen Brots to record the game-winner from 30 yards out after Hannah Rodgers’ pass.

The win capped a great week for Santos with very convincing performances against top-level teams from New Jersey, Georgia, Texas, and New York.

Team Chicago Academy-Botafogo also claimed the Disney title with a convincing 6-2 win over Javanon from Kentucky. The game was televised on ESPN3 and can be found at this link http://espn.go.com/watchespn/player/_/id/744360/size/condensed/

Botafogo conceded an early goal, but responded with 2 goals in the next 3 minutes to take a 2-1 lead into the break. The first goal was by Zoe Swift from Meegan Johnston and Gianna Dal Pozzo’s assists, and the second goal was a perfect Jenna Romano header off Hope D’Addario’s corner.

Botafogo quickly ran away with the game in the 2nd half as Zoe Swift scored twice in two minutes from perfect Zoey Goralski assists. Ashley Handwork made it 5-1 halfway through the 2nd half and Molly Piech got the final goal in the 89th minute from Meegan Johnston’s cross.

The win was Botafogo’s first Disney title after being runners-up the past two years.

Team Chicago Academy-Botafogo beat the defending National Champions VSA Heat 3-1 to clinch the National League title. With the win Botafogo finished with a perfect 7-0 record (23 goals for and 3 against) and 6 points clear of VSA Heat in 2nd place. This marks only the 3rd time in National League history that a team has finished with a perfect record.

Although, only needing a tie to clinch the title, Botafogo came out on fire against VSA scoring 2 decisive goals in the opening 6 minutes. In the 3rd minute Meegan Johnston’s corner found Hope D’Addario 22 yards out, and she blasted a low, hard shot home for the early lead. 3 minutes later Hope turned provider as her corner-kick found Gianna Dal Pozzo who scored with an emphatic header.

Botafogo and National League top-scorer Zoe Swift put the game out of reach in the 33rd minute with her 5th goal of the week after a nice assist by Ashley Handwork. This was the 3rd goal in the last two games where the strike-partners linked up for a goal.

Botafogo will now play Kentucky State Cup Champions Javanon in tomorrow’s Disney College Showcase Final. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3 at 7am CST.

Team Chicago Academy-Botafogo clinched a berth into the U18 USYS National Championships in Overland Park, KS in July after a 3-1 victory over Blast FC from Ohio in the penultimate National League game. With the win Botafogo maintained a perfect 6-0 record.

Botafogo was led by Zoe Swift’s hat-trick. She got her first goal in the 25th minute from Bryce Banuelos’ assist. Blast equalized in the 66th minute, but only a minute later Ashley Handwork and Zoey Goralski combined to set up Zoe Swift for the eventual game-winner. Swift got her third to put the game out of reach in the 81st minute from Ashley Handwork and Kaitlin Johnson.

Tomorrow morning at 8:30am Botafogo will face the National Champion VSA Heat from Virginia to determine the winner of the National League. Botafogo will need a tie or win to clinch the title.

Team Chicago Academy-Santos beat United SA from Georgia 5-3 to qualify for the U17 Disney College Showcase final on Thursday. This marks the second year running that Santos qualifies for the Disney Final.

Santos got an early goal from Kaela Leskovar assisted by Olivia Schmitt and Kristen Brots, and Talise Romain made it 2-0 in the 11th minute from Kaela Leskovar and Kristen Brots. Early in the 2nd half Olivia Schmitt made it 3-0 from Heather Handwork and Kristen Brot.

United SA made it 3-1 before Olivia Schmitt beautifully assisted Heather Handwork to make it 4-1. United SA made it 4-2 on a PK, but Gianna Marconi made an elegant run to set up Hannah Rodgers for the 5th Santos goal of the game.

Team Chicago Academy-Internacional tied McLean MPS from Virgina 2-2 behind Miranda Lambert and Cailin LaRocque’s goals to remain unbeaten at the Disney College Showcase. Tomorrow night Internacional will face Lou Fusz from Missouri to determine the finalist spot. With a win Internacional will advance to the Disney final.