St. John's University Athletics
McCracken, Scaffidi Claim U-19 Crown
7/5/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
QUEENS, N.Y. - A pair of Red Storm rising sophomores claimed a prestigious title on Tuesday morning, as Madeline McCracken and Samie Scaffidi won the US Youth Soccer Region I U-19 Championship in Huntington, W. Va., with McLean 96 Green. McCracken and Scaffidi will now have the honor of playing for the 2016 US Youth Soccer National Championship, which will take place from July 25-31 at the Toyota Soccer Center in Frisco, Texas.
McLean opened up competition on Saturday morning, routing Vincent United Pride by a score of 8-2. Both Scaffidi (80') and McCracken (89') scored for their squad in the lopsided victory.
The following morning, McLean rallied from an early deficit against Far Post Premier, scoring four unanswered goals in the span of just 14 minutes to coast to a 5-3 victory and secure a spot in Monday's semifinals.
Following a 1-1 draw with VSA Heat 96 Blue in the semifinal, McLean clinched a spot in the championship match. The final, played at 9 a.m. this morning, was a rematch of the opening tilt between McLean, the only team to go unbeaten in preliminary play, and Vincent United. While the result was not as one-sided as the first meeting between the two sides, McLean still cruised to a 3-0 victory, thanks in part to Scaffidi's second goal of the tournament.
Scaffidi made an immediate impact on the Red Storm in 2015, seeing action in 14 matches and recording an assist in the process. The freshman from Silver Spring, Md., helped the Red Storm register its finest regular season on record this past fall, as the squad won a program-best 15 matches and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the second time in just three seasons.
McCracken, who has been invited to a number of United States Women's National Team training camps, will make her St. John's debut this fall after transferring from Boston College in January. The Lynch Station, Va., native made 16 appearances during her rookie campaign with the Eagles, including four starts.
St. John's will kick off the 2016 season on Aug. 19, playing host to CCSU at 5 p.m. on Belson Stadium.
