By RICHIE HALL
It takes a special group of athletes to win a national championship in any sport.
Kevin Lawrence found that special group: the Indy Eleven Pro Academy 2013 Boys. Lawrence coached that team to a national championship victory in the U13 MLS Next Cup Premier Division, which took place May 28 to 31 in Salt Lake City.
The Indy Eleven Pro Academy team won five games over four days in a 32-team knockout tournament. There were no easy contests: Two of those games went to penalty kicks and the championship game was a hard-fought battle over Chula Vista (Calif.) that IEPA won 2-1.
Lawrence said the IEPA team played “extremely well,” and were a “very resolute, very disciplined” team.
“As in any knockout tournament, you have to overcome some adversity, some hurdles,” said Lawrence. “It’s an extremely resilient group.”
Lawrence said the mental strength and resilience of the IEPA U13 players “is pretty rare for these ages. I’ve been doing this for 21 years and this is a unique group.”
The IEPA team won its first-round game 3-1 over FC Golden State, then edged out the Atlanta-based Southern Swarm in a 6-5 shootout after playing to a 3-3 tie in regulation. Games consisted of two 30-minute halves; if teams were tied at the end of regulation, they went straight to penalty kicks.
Next up was RSL Arizona in the quarterfinals, and IEPA won that one 3-1. In the semifinals, IEPA got past Charlotte Independence in another penalty-kick shootout 4-2 to earn a place in the final. The IEPA squad scored with under two minutes left to tie the game 1-1.
Lawrence said the Indy Eleven team took a “we above me” mindset for the tournament.
“They all bought in, just did what was asked for that playoff run and did tremendously,” said the coach.
The IEPA team qualified through their performance in the MLS Next League’s Midwest Division. Indy Eleven finished fifth in the conference and received a “Premier Qualification.” The U13 team was assembled last summer and began playing in the fall.
“A lot of the kids have come up together,” said Craig Czubik, the father of Camden Czubik, one of the players on the team. “They’ve played with each other the last four or five years. This is the highest level for soccer in the U.S.”
Lawrence called the players “very aspirational kids,” saying that their “mindset is what differentiates them from the hundreds or thousands of kids out there.”
“You’ve got a core that was there the previous year and we sprinkled some new guys in there again,” said Lawrence. “The chemistry is quite good. They’re willing to push each other. You don’t have bad attitudes, or selfish or prima donna players.”
The U13 team’s victory also made history for the Indy Eleven Pro Academy as well. Lawrence said it’s the biggest championship the academy has ever won.
“In soccer, it’s a big deal,” said the coach.
Be the first to comment on "Indy Eleven Pro Academy team wins national championship"