Milwaukee Kickers Soccer Club

 The MK Elite Strikers, the Milwaukee Kickers club-wide select program, has roster spaces available for both its U13 boy's and girl's teams.

To schedule a tryout or for more information, please contact program director Michael King prior to July 9 at 414.358.2678 or michaelk@mksc.org

2010 MK ELITE TRY OUT FORM

The MK Elite Strikers U11 girls competed well last weekend in Franklin at the Croatian Tournament.

In the first game they played a team from MK United.  The girls came out strong.  The Strikers battled for loose balls and controlled the entire match.  Tianna Aliota had a tremendous game at defense for them.  Elite went on to win the game 7-0. The teams only negative was that they got a bit over confident after the big win in the first game.

In the second game the Strikers played a team from Elmhurst, Illinois and came out flat. “We did not work to win 50/50 balls and struggled,” said Coach Luis after the 4-0 lost. Tyler Neutgens kept the team competitive with her relentless defensive play and pressure. 

Elite's third and final game was played against MK Alliance. The two teams were pretty balanced with the Strikers experiencing several high and low moments throughout the game.  On the good side, the girls won a high percentage of loose balls and stayed mentally focused on their team goals throughout the game.  The game ended in a 2-2 tie due to a last minute long range blast from Holly Rossman.

“Overall, I was happy with the effort of the entire team in 2 of the 3 games. They realized what went wrong in the second game and my hope is that they learn from it and turn that negative into a positive for future games” said Luis as he looks forward to the upcoming league games.

The weekend started out with a crossover game against the Pewaukee Pirates.  The Elite Strikers came out strong and ready to go scoring two goals against the Pirates while earning a shut-out. 

The Strikers second game was against the Tosa Cosmo's.  The first-half of the game was dominated by the Elite Strikers but they struggled to put the ball in the back of the net.  At half-time, the game was tied at 0-0.  The Strikers started the second half strong with a free-kick taken by Izzi Thomsen.  The shot was hard enough to pass through the hands of the opposing keeper leading to a 1-0 Strikers win.

In the third game, the Strikers took on the Croatian Eagle White team.  Once again, the Strikers dominated early but struggled to capitalize on scoring opportunities.  Even with the missed chances, the Strikers won the game 2-0.

The Strikers entered the final with three wins under their belt and a heap of confidence, they would need it as they were matched up against the Pewaukee Pirates for the second time. 

The championship game followed the same pattern as the previous three with the Strikers dominating play but without points on the board.  The game ended at 0-0 tie and went into penalty kicks.  Both teams missed two penalty kicks but the Strikers’ Gaby Zabala came through in the end by making her final penalty kick and winning the championship. 

This was the second year that the Elite Strikers won first place in the Croatian Eagle Spring Tournament!  A well deserved victory girls, keep up the great work!

The Elite Strikers performed well at this year’s Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin A/B Select tournament held April 30-May 2 at Uihlein Soccer Park.

Three of the four Elite Strikers teams had an opportunity to walk away from the tournament with a first place trophy. Amanda Winn and her U12 girls were able to rebound from a Saturday loss to take first place while Michael King’s U12 boys put together three strong performances to also capture first place, despite not having played a competitive outdoor match since last November. Mark Schill’s U11 boys played well to reach a Sunday final only to come up short against a strong Yahara team.

The Elite Striker U11 girls team, coached by Luis Mejia, played in three very close games but weren’t able to come away with a trophy.

“I was very pleased with all of our teams and players during this tournament” said Elite Strikers director and coach, Michael King. “The individual improvement of player’s skills was tremendous from last fall. If players want to become better then there is no substitute for hard work, good coaching and great parenting. This is what we have in this club and I’m proud to be associated with this group of people. Winning is not everything at this age, it about learning and developing what it will take to have the opportunity to win.”

There is no time to rest for the Elite girls teams as they will be taking part in the Croatian Tournament at Croatian Park, May 7-9. Last year, the tournament was cut short due to heavy rain in the area. Let’s hope that Mother Nature doesn’t have the same in store for the girls this year!

The Elite Striker U11 boys team gets a weekend off from games while the U12’s have a state league game Sunday away against KM United.

For Croatian tournament information and a game schedule, go to: http://www.croatianeaglessc.com/tournaments-youth-schedule.asp