Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Represented at National Soccer Competition
January 27, 2005 | Women's Soccer
Jan. 27, 2005
CARSON, Calif. - Texas Tech head soccer coach Neil McGuire took his Region 3 Olympic Development U-19 team to Los Angeles, Calif., this past weekend to compete at the National Training center.
McGuire's team competed against the nation's finest from the other three Olympic Development regions. McGuire's team came away the victor. After 1-1 ties with both Region 2 and 4, his Region 3 pulled off a 4-1 victory to win the Inter-Regional event by a one-goal difference.
The Olympic Development Program, which is separated into four regions across the United States, is designed to mold and develop the best talent the country has to offer in an effort to keep the women's National team as the best team in the world in women's soccer.
McGuire, selected from a list of some of the top coaches in the Southeast to be the head coach of the Region III Olympic Development Program U-19 squad, is now undefeated in his last 5 games. This was his second event with the team.
"I was extremely pleased with our team performance in all three games", said McGuire. "Our team fully deserved their success. To compete against the nation's best players and win is always nice. As we continue to develop elite level soccer players in our Region, it can only help the women's National team program. The United States has the very best women's soccer in the world, and our goal, as coaches in the Olympic Development Program, is to ensure it always remains so."
Players from Region III, which include talent pools in the states of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas, assembled in Montevallo, Ala., during the summer. From those players, McGuire, along with his assistant coach Steve Holeman, the head soccer coach at the University of Mississippi, were given the task of identifying and selecting the best of the best for the Region III team.
The team trained and competed at the U.S. National Team Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. Standouts from these competitions are invited to compete in the U-19 U.S. National Team training. The competition, held at the Home Depot Center, ran from Thursday through Sunday. The 27,000-seat state-of-the-art Home Depot Center soccer stadium is the home of the MLS Cup Champion Los Angeles Galaxy. In addition, the facility serves as the training headquarters for the U.S. Soccer Federation's National Teams.
National Signing Day for women's soccer is slated for Wed., Feb. 2. For complete details of Texas Tech women's soccer, visit www.texastech.com.
