ECNL Boys U18/19 National Champions decided, remaining Finals berths clinched

The 2025 ECNL Boys Playoffs came to an exciting conclusion on Tuesday in Seattle, as the final set of ECNL Finals berths were clinched and the U18/19 National Champions were crowned.

Going Out On Top

Tuesday morning, XF Academy and Eclipse Select took to the field for the ECNL Boys U18/19 National Championship game, a culmination of hard work throughout the season and their youth careers. Many of the players on the pitch had seen a national championship before on both teams, and Tuesday’s game was a chance for them to end their youth careers on top.

From the opening whistle, the two teams played with heightened energy and controlled emotions. Neither side wanted to be the ones to allow the opponent to open the scoring, which resulted in a lot of midfield play for the squads. But in the 15th minute, Eclipse Select struck first.

Midfielder Daniel Mendez had the ball at his feet in the middle of the pitch and went on the attack. He sliced through the XF Academy defense, splitting multiple defenders and then slotted home a shot to the bottom right corner of the net to give Eclipse Select a 1-0 lead.

Eclipse Select’s goal seemed to awaken something in XF Academy, because on the restart, the hometown team started pushing forward and earning the majority of the scoring chances. The team worked the ball well into the attacking third, generating scoring chances and corner kicks, but couldn’t solve Eclipse Select goalkeeper Daniel Llanos, at least until the 35th minute.

In the 35th, XF Academy made a substitution that put Ibrahim Karabay onto the pitch, and he made an immediate impact. Karabay took a shot from inside the box on the right side, which bounced off the far post and into the net, evening the match at 1-1.

The two sides kept trading possessions and scoring chances, but headed into halftime tied 1-1.

It didn’t take long for XF Academy to take the lead in the second frame, as the team found the back of the net just seven minutes into the half. Midfielder Archie Dhima battled with the Eclipse Select backline, trying to work the ball closer to the net, when he turned and put a shot on frame. His shot bounced off an Eclipse Select defender and found its way into the back of the net, giving XF Academy the 2-1 lead.

Even armed with the lead, XF Academy continued to push forward, refusing to play a passive game, knowing their offense would be what carried them to victory. Meanwhile, Eclipse Select also started pushing numbers forward, desperate to get the equalizer. The result was scoring chances for both ends, requiring big moments from the goalkeepers.

In the 80th minute, Eclipse Select had their best chance of the half. A free kick from Eclipse Select sent the ball down low, and then a pass into the middle of the box found Iggie Escamilla ready for a header. He deflected a shot on net, forcing XF Academy’s Kenny Pierpoint to make a one-handed diving save to keep the ball out of his net and XF Academy’s lead intact.

Eclipse Select kept pushing and pushing and finally, in the 88th minute, were rewarded for their efforts. Mendez had a long run on the left side of the pitch, drawing the defenders toward him and eventually leading them to the endline inside the box. There, he sent a pass back into the middle, where Escamilla knocked home the shot, tying the game at 2-2 and nearly guaranteeing extra time.

As the clock ticked agonizingly slow toward extra time, XF Academy earned a corner kick that was cleared out, followed by a corner to Eclipse Select. Select sent in a service that was cleared out, springing XF Academy for a quick counterattack. Sprinting down the left side of the pitch, Anthony Garcia received a pass just at the top of the box, cut into the middle of the pitch, causing an Eclipse Select defender to fall down, and then ripped a shot past Llanos to give XF Academy the 3-2 victory.

With the win, XF Academy’s ‘06 players clinched back to back national championships, while its ‘07s avenged their national championship loss to LAFC So Cal in 2024. The win also completed a campaign where XF Academy never lost a match, and handed Eclipse Select its first loss of the season.

The elation of triumphs, the agony of defeat. Both teams worked incredibly hard to reach this moment, and for XF Academy, they get to close out their season, and for some, their youth career, with a national championship on their home field, in front of their fans.

That’s the stuff dreams are made of.

Swan Song

It’s been an incredible run for Pateadores in the ECNL Boys North American Cup competition. In 2022, Pateadores defeated VA Union to capture the inaugural ECNL Boys North American Cup, and in 2024, Pateadores once again made it to the North American Cup Final, eventually falling to Louisville City Academy.

Now in 2025, Pateadores was back in the North American Cup Final, this time facing off against Manhattan SC.

Pateadores opened the scoring just nine minutes into the game, when forward Jake Tatch sent a ball across the field into the box, where his teammate headed the service backpost and into the net for a 1-0 lead.

In the 25th minute, Tatch went one-on-one with a defender in the box, and slipped in a shot at the near post, doubling Pateadores’ lead to 2-0 and his second point of the game.

That 2-0 score held through halftime until seven minutes into the second frame, when Manhattan SC cut Pateadores’ lead to 2-1. Manhattan SC started putting pressure on the Pateadores backline in the second half and was rewarded with a penalty kick after a player was fouled in the box. From the spot, Manhattan SC stepped up and drilled a shot into the lower corner of the net to try and spark a comeback.

Immediately on the restart, however, Pateadores marched down the field connecting multiple passes that resulted in the ball in the back of Manhattan SC’s net, putting Pateadores ahead 3-1.

Pateadores added two more goals in the 66th and 84th minutes, ending their season with a 5-1 victory and as North American Cup champions once again.

U14 Tickets Punched

Concorde Fire Platinum (defeated Seattle United 2-2(4-3))
Eastside SC (defeated Rebels SC 3-2)
LV Heat Surf (defeated NCFC Youth Academy 3-1)
Match Fit Academy (defeated El Paso Locomotive 2-1)
Ohio Premier (defeated Solar SC 1-0)
Pateadores (defeated Oklahoma Energy FC 5-1)
Pipeline SC (defeated Penn Fusion SA 3-1)
XF Academy (defeated Association FC 2-1)

U13 Tickets Punched

Alabama FC (defeated Sporting California 2-1)
Eastside SC (defeated Oklahoma Energy FC 3-3(4-2))
Legends FC (defeated VDA 3-1)
NCFC Youth Academy (defeated Seattle United 3-1)
NTH-NASA (defeated Beach FC (CA) 1-0)
Pateadores (defeated San Diego Surf 2-1)
Solar SC (defeated HTX 2-0)
XF Academy (defeated Concorde Fire Platinum 4-1)