Placer United 2009 boys ready for Surf Cup

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A season begins anew and in the club soccer world, the fall brings new hope as it is a new ECNL season for the 2009 boys from Placer United. The team arrived in San Diego yesterday, and starts its season today, taking part in the Surf Cup that takes place in Del Mar from July 19-22. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Placer United will play Santa Monica Surf today at 2:40 to kick off their run in the Super Black Division, then face Seattle Celtic SC on Saturday and then Pateadores on Sunday. It is a challenging schedule to open the season, but this group is up to the challenge and will be led by some very talented players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Christian Demeyko, Outside Defender, Del Oro, Class of 2028</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Demeyko is an outside back and an incoming freshman at Del Oro High, a good soccer program, and he is one of three players listed here that is playing up on the 2009 team. He is a strong defender, a physical one who loves going after the ball and getting stuck in. He's not afraid of a challenge, does not back down or get intimidated and uses his fierce competitiveness and his pace to get up and down the flanks really well, also.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Josiah Escalante, Defensive Midfielder, Antelope, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Escalante is a rising sophomore at Antelope High and he is a true pivot type of No. 6. He is great with the ball at his feet and is a playmaker from that deep sitting position. He is very calm when on the ball and rarely makes a poor decision or pass. Once he is on the ball he is incredibly hard to dispossess or knock off the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gage Guest, Forward, Rocklin, Class of 2028</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Guest is the second of three 2028 grads on this list of players, and he is a crafty and creative player who can make something out of nothing. He shows an advanced feel for the game, and he shows that by floating into half spaces to work combinations in the build up, leading to being dangerous in the attack.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='8197' first='Malik' last='Harris'], Central Midfielder, Del Oro, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Harris is an awesome talent. He is a center mid from Del Oro High, and is a rising sophomore, who made an impact on the varsity last year as a freshman. His mom is the school's varsity girls coach, and the game is in his blood and it shows. He has great instincts and understands that game at a high level. He can see things develop in front of him and is able to move the ball into the open space, leading the player to where he should be and he seems to make the right pass at the right time in order to open the game up. He is also very willing to defend and is a very good tackler. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ryan Hutchinson, Forward/Attacking Midfielder, West Park, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hutchison is a rising sophomore at West Park High and is a forward and attacking midfielder with great agility and quickness. He's shifty and hard to mark, but he will also out-work most defenders, making him even harder to mark as he has a high motor and is constantly in motion. He is relentless in his style of play as he is always looking to get in on goal and put pressure on the keeper and defenders.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Reid Lavine, Keeper, Whitney, Class of 2028</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lavine is going to be the next great keeper at Whitney High as the rising freshman will make an impact at that excellent program. He is the third of three 2028 grads mentioned here playing up on this 2009 team. He is a keeper with great feet and showing great instincts, displaying a natural feel for the game which allows him to anticipate well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='274708' first='Christian' last='Lees'], Central Defender, Whitney, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lees is the next in a long line of excellent center backs at Whitney High as he will follow the likes of Jake Tyberg, [player_tooltip player_id='8581' first='Ruben' last='Ramirez'] and Eden Young. He is tall and athletic as Whitney likes center backs that can do everything. He is strong with both feet and distributes well to all levels of the field, and as a defender he shows good instincts on when to step for the ball. He is also very strong in the air.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Memo Lunar, Defender/Defensive Midfielder, Oakmont, Class of 2027</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lunar is a left-footed defender who can also be flexible enough to step up and play the No. 6 spot, or play as a No. 11. He likes to involve himself in the attack when he's on the outside as he gets up and down the pitch well. He's very dynamic as he covers a lot of ground, he reads the game very well and is a very good distributor. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->