Coast FA teams took the opportunity to stay home this weekend and participate in the Grand Strand YMCA Can Am Cup at Market Commons. Sleeping in their own beds paid big dividends as ten different Coast teams claimed championship or finalist medals." We chose to play at home this weekend and give the parents a little break while also supporting our community's YMCA program. Playing on the turf fields at Market Commons is a treat for the kids and a chance to play a tournament at home is always nice " said Coast DOC Ross Morgan.

On the boys side, Coast teams won championships at U9 (Coast 05), U10 (Coast 04 Red) and two at U11 (Coast 03 Red,Coast 02 Black) while also capturing a finalist medals at U9 (Coast 05), U12 (Coast 02 Red) and U13 (Coast 01). The Coast girls teams brought home three finalist medals at U10 (Coast 03G Red) , U12 (Coast 01G Red) and U13 (Coast 00G Crush Too). All totaled Coast added ten awards to the trophy case this weekend." We were able to enter our youngest kids in their first ever tournament and are grateful to the YMCA for hosting the Can Am Cup" said Morgan.

Click Team link for Image
 

The Coast 03 Red U10 boys captured top honors in the Charleston Battery Cup over the weekend in Mount Pleasant , South Carolina. Coach Swavek Apanowicz's squad continued their impressive Spring season with four consecutive wins over quality opponents. Two of the wins came against strong teams from Savannah Georgia and the other two against a very familiar DSC Green squad from Rock Hill South Carolina. The final saw Coast go down early 0-1 only to fight back to tie things up at 1-1 at half. Two long range strikes from set pieces proved to be the difference in the match as it ended 3-1 Coast.

Three other Coast teams participated in the event and posted solid results. The highlight of the weekend for the kids was being able to watch the Charleston Battery host MLS teams DC United, Houston Dynamo and Seattle Sounders in sold out Blackbaud Stadium.

Grande Park at The Market Commons once again provided host Coast FA teams a home field edge this weekend at the 4th annual McDonald's Coast Winter Classic. Coast teams brought home championships or finalist trophies in four of the five U13 / U14 divisions.The teams faced brutal weather conditions during the morning hours Saturday before enjoying a Spring like day on Sunday.

Coast teams captured championship trophies in the U14 first division for both boys and girls. Coach Joel Banta's 99 Red team was first to the podium with a solid 2-0 decision over the OCSA Coastal Crew from Jacksonville (Click for Image). The team scored a whopping fourteen goals and allowed only one over four matches. Pat Piscitelli's 99 Crush girls were also impressive this weekend posting three wins and one tie on their way to receiving the top spot. The Crush girls poured in seventeen goals during the tournament.

The Coast 00 Crush Too girls coached by Madi Owens fell just short in the final match losing 0-2 to DSC Lady Green from Rock Hill. The Crush Too girls enjoyed four very competitive matches during the Winter Classic ending with a 2-1-1 record (Click for Image).

The most impressive showing of the tournament came from Coach Joel Barber's Coast 01 Red team which lost in the championship match to Mount Pleasant. The 01 Red boys played four teams that were a year older and finished the weekend with two wins, one loss and a tie (Click for Image).

Teams from throughout the Southeastern United States came together for the 16th annual Boys Rule Tournament in Savannah Georgia over the weekend and four Coast FA teams returned to the Beach with finalist hardware.The pre season tournament serves as a springboard into the SCYSA League play next weekend. 

Coach Jeremy Glicks Coast 00 Red boys came up one goal short against Celtic FC from Hales, Florida in the championship of the U13 top division. The two teams battled to a 0-0 draw in round robin play to set up the rematch. (Click Here for Image)

The Coast 03 Red U10 boys coached by Swavek Apanowicz played a year up to the second division of the U11 age group and fell just short of capturing the title. The boys lost a hard fought decision after posting two wins and a tie in the qualifying rounds of their first ever 8v8 tournament. (Click Here for Image)

Coach Carl Clarks Coast 03 Black squad had the misfortune of facing a Selex Barcelona side twice on their way to a runner up finish in the top U10 division. The 03 Black played quality soccer throughout the tournament while bringing in several new players.

The Coast 04 Red boys led by Coach Luis Brenes posted two shutout victories on Saturday but ran into a stubborn Savannah United Club in the finals on Sunday to fall in the championship match of the top U9 division.

"We sent five boys teams to the Savannah event this year and returned with four finalist trophies. The fifth team was Donnie Price's Coast 02 Red squad who played three matches against teams that are among the best in the Southeast and missed going to the finals on goal differential. Playing a tournament in January is challenging weather wise but pays big dividends as we start league play next week" said Coach DOC Joel Banta.

Coach Eric Ott's Coast U10 Boys finished as a Finalist in the prestigious Disney 3v3 Tournament over the Christmas break. Team participants are Jake Desalvo, Chris Graham, Cooper Jennings, Stefano Naos and Mathi Ott......Well done boys !

The Myrtle Beach Mutiny has agreed to terms to bring on Jack Vundum as head coach for the 2014 NPSL season. "We are excited to bring in a young Collegiate coach with a very high energy level for this year's team. Coach Vundum has benefited from working under legendary Coach Gary Hamill at Wingate University and we are confident that he will be a great fit for the Mutiny. Coast DOC Ross Morgan led the team last year and will serve in an advisory role to Coach Vundum this season " said Mutiny Sporting Director Pat Piscitelli. " With this being our third season we do not anticipate a need for major changes in the program. Tryouts will take place in the coming months and Coach Vundum can choose his squad and hit the ground running" added Morgan.

Jack Vundum is entering his first season as head coach of the Myrtle Beach Mutiny F.C. A native of Birmingham, England, Vundum is currently an assistant women's soccer coach at Wingate University in Wingate, N.C. Vundum played a vital role in helping the Bulldogs advance to the NCAA Elite Eight while earning #8 final ranking and a South Atlantic Conference championship. He coached two All-Americans along with four all-region players and seven all-conference selections. Prior to his role with the Wingate women, Vundum served as men's assistant soccer coach for the Wingate men's soccer program in 2011 and 2012. The Bulldog men also won a Southeast Region championship to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in school history and landed at #9 in the final national poll in 2012.

Coach Vundum also plays a vital role for the Wingate International Soccer Academy, rated as one of the top high school soccer showcase camps in the country. His duties include coaching prospective student athletes, marketing of camps, and recruitment. Currently, Vundum holds a Football Association (F.A.) Level II, a NSCAA National Diploma and is set to take the UEFA B coaching license this Fall.

Vundum was a four-year starter at Wingate University where he earned All-South Atlantic Conference and All-Region honors. In his senior season, the Bulldogs finished 15-4, earning a South Atlantic Conference title and a berth in the NCAA tournament. Vundum finished second on the team with 20 points. He also finished second on the team, and 20th in the country, with eight assists to earn All-Conference. After college, Vundum played for the West Virginia Chaos of the PDL.

Something very noticeable will be missing from the Myrtle Beach Mutiny sideline this May when the team kicks off their third season on the Grand Strand. The team's larger than life Norwegian owner Trym Hogner has reluctantly sold the team to Coast FA . "After an agonizing back and forth month I have come to the realization that I can no longer devote the needed time and energy that the team deserves due to my business in Norway. I have a deep passion for the game and especially the Mutiny which I started in 2012. Turning the club over to the guys at Coast FA gives me peace of mind that what I created will be cared for and made even better in the years to come" said Hogner.

Mutiny Sporting Director Pat Piscitelli has been with the club since day one and will stay on to run the day to day operations of the club and provide continuity from the two previous seasons." We will miss Trym's passion but I feel confident that we can build on our success in year three. Having the support of the Myrtle Beach based Coast FA Board of Directors is a very comforting feeling. The Mutiny will benefit greatly from the financial stability provided by Coast and allow us to create a long range plan for the team. Now that everything is finalized we will announce our 2014 coaching staff in a few days" said Piscitelli.

Coast FA Executive Director Heyward Gulledge added " we do not see a need to make major changes in how the team will operate moving forward this season. We plan to keep the Myrtle Beach Mutiny name and uniforms this year and play our home matches at Ashley Booth Field.Tryout dates are being set and everyone at Coast is excited to be taking on a larger role with the Mutiny.We will forever be thankful to Trym for starting his NPSL franchise here in Myrtle Beach and see this as an opportunity to fulfill our mission to provide an additional level of soccer for our community.
 

Coast FA is happy to announce a partnership with Speed and Balance Inc.( S.A.B.) to offer speed , agility and balance training for its players. S.A.B. is a Myrtle Beach based company owned by Aaron Musick that specializes in training young athletes . " We are excited to bring Aaron's program to Socastee Park for the Coast FA players looking for additional training. This program is a natural fit for kids looking for a competitive edge and we see it as a value added service for our players " said Coast Director Heyward Gulledge. Details for the new program can be found on www.speedandbalance.com and you may contact Aaron at 843-251-6851 or amusick00@gmail.com

Fifteen Coast FA players received the gift of a lifetime when they were invited to participate in the Grand Strand Miracle League’s first ever soccer skills training session last night at Doug Shaw Stadium.

Miracle League directors Tory Mackey and Kate Duggan worked with Coast DOC Ross Morgan and Soccer Lockers own Ansel Lovell to organize five skills stations ran by Coast players and members of the CCU women soccer team. " The chance to interact with these kids is truly a life changing experience for our players and we look forward to being back out in a few weeks with a different group of our kids. These are some of the coolest kids that you will ever meet and they really trained hard tonight " said Morgan.

You may find additional information on the Miracle League at http://www.grandstrandmiracleleague.com/

We are pleased to support the work Global Soccer Mininstries is doing in Jamaica.  For more information on Global Soccer Ministries click here.