CONCORD, MA – Wednesday brought the first pool match here at the U14 Boys National ID Camp, and commitment was the most prominent attribute on display.

The soccer wasn't always great as players from both teams in the day's final match were giving their all to close down and fluster their opponents, but the heart and effort on display will have been encouraging for head coach Manny Schellscheidt and his staff.

The match was played on turf fields here at Middlesex Prep due to rains that fell most of the day. While a downpour tempered the opening two matches of the day between regional squads, skies cleared up in time for the coveted pool match.

Norcross Fury (GA) standout Daniel Johnson showed some good touches and an ability to turn in the early going. Johnson is here for the 2nd consecutive year and combines tenacity with good skill. Northern Virgnia's Christian Rodriguez is a good all-around player with the willingness to get stuck in and the skill to make a difference in a match.

Team 5 scored the opening goal when Emilio Lopez of Madison, WI hit a good long pass cross field for New York Red Bulls forward Adam Najem. Najem control the ball well and hit a shot off the post before knocking home the rebound.

Playmaker Lopez also showed some real ability as a two-way midfielder during his shift.

FC DELCO Goalkeeper Zak Steffan came up with a highlight reel save on a strike from North Carolina's Anthony Jeffries. Isaias Juarez of Striker FC in New Mexico showed a good ability to turn and shoot, while Dallas Texans' forward Emerson Hyndman made some good passes into space to get his team's attack in motion.

Halftime brought wholesale substitutions as is the custom here. If there is anybody in the camp faster than Hoosier FC forward Jalen Brown, I haven't seen him. Brown works hard on every ball and can get to most of them first. Luckily for Team 6, goalkeeper Joseph Ghitis of Florida club West Pines United is quick off his line as well, which kept Brown from getting a soft goal early in the half.

Instead it was Colorado Rush midfielder Oscar Montes who made a strong down the right, beating two defenders before firing a shot that trickled in to make the score 1-1. Team 5 then battled back with Lynden Gooch of Santa Cruz County Breakers taking a pass from Pete Pearson of Beach before lashing a shot that brought a good save from Ghitis, but Brown outraced everybody to the rebound and got a well-deserved goal.

Team 6 worked for an equalizer. Team 5 defender Nick Hutchinson of Lehigh United made a vital intervention to stop one effort, but the tying goal eventually came from Southern California's Paul Arriola after a good run down the left and pass from Concorde Fire's Julio Jimenez.

The teams will be back at it again on Thursday.


Tuesday Lineups

Team 5 vs. Team 6

Team 5
GK: Zak Steffen (Scott Levene)
D: Michael Steele (Ali Jawad), Christian De Luna (Russell Canouse), Dylan Greenberg (Nick Hutchinson)
M: Mike McKune (Miguel Polly), Emilio Lopez (Abdirrahman Yusuf), Jordan Allen (Zak Pfeffer), Christian Rodriguez (Pete Pearson)
F: Adam Najem (Jalen Brown), Diego Fagundez (Mike Chang), Isaias Juarez (Lynden Gooch)

Team 6
GK: Arthur Eggers (Joseph Ghitis)
D: Austin Marques (Emilio Huerta), Trevor Haberkorn (Vincente Reyes), Michael Hinkson (Feliciano Charles)
M: Emerson Hyndman (Oscar Montes), Daniel Johnson (Ismael Longo), Anthony Jefferies (Antonio Murillo), Jonathan Scherrer (Antonio Velasquez)
F: Devonte Small (Paul Arriola), James Nosack (Jacob Smith), Henry Wingo (Julio Jimenez)


Region I vs. Region IV

Region I
GK: Brent Arnold
D: Matt Nyeayea (Andrew Tinari), Mark Romanowksi (Mitch Cancilla), Marshall Ellick (Kobi Osei-wusu)
M: James Doll (Justin Burrell), Alex Ramos (Arun Basuljevic), Christian Sady (Santiago Moore)
F: Ryan Villela (Paulus Gilpi), Alec Neumann, Jon Interiano (Sam Boylan)

Region IV
GK: Connor Adkisson (Ethan Horvath)
D: Cristian Cruz, Joe Mancini, Cesar Mendoza (Michael Gray)
M: Alan Huerta (Andrew Perez), Ever De La Torre (Michael Osorio), Kouri Nago (Ricardo Perez)
F: Thomas Thompson, Kevin Labastida, Jose Laboy (Bryan Guzman)


Region II vs. Region III

Region II
GK: Kyle Dal Santo (Robert Beckwell)
D: Ilias Lasley (Josh Cohen), Brent Winkler (Matt Habrowski), Louie Bennett (Jake Taylor)
M: Joel Teston, Dexter Offer, Seo Kim (Elias El-Metennani)
F: Lucas Staufer (Driton Zyteja), Dalton Amez (Dan Lev), Travis Wannemueller (Seo Kim)

Region III
GK: Jonathan Davis
D: Kellyn Acosta, Forest Denio, Chris Lea
M: Erick Chapa, Raul Diaz, Marco Sunol, Romario Bernard
F: Erik Clark, Francisco Miranda, Cameron Mosely
Subs: Brian Paredes (GK), Marcus Epps, Reyes Espino, Ismael Gurresqueta, Wesley Gussman, Ko Kunita, Nigel Robinson, George Voulgaris