Register Now for Summer Soccer!!

It's that time of year again to combine fun and sun!

Summer time is the perfect time to enjoy playing soccer without the pressure of winnning.

Practice and play games all summer long with friends and family. Stroudsburg and Tobyhanna Locations this year so no need to travel anywhere!

To register for Tobyhanna and Stroudsburg Summer Soccer Click here

Stroudsburg, PA
Player ID Camp

West Ham United Football (soccer) Club from London, England, have arguably one of the greatest youth academies in the world. In recent years the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole and Glen Johnson are all graduates of the West Ham United Academy. The West Ham United International Academy has been established to identify players who may one day be good enough to play for the West Ham first team - Will you “Be The One?”

When: June 11th - 13th, 2012

Where: Keystone Athletic Complex 4218 Manor Drive, Stroudsburg, PA 18360

Time: U9-U11: 9-11am; U12-U14:11am-1pm; U15+ 5-7pm

Cost: $125

To register go to:  www.westhamacademyinternational.com

The camp is open to U9-U18 boys and girls and will be overseen by a senior member of the West Ham United International Academy coaching staff. The camp will consist of coaching methods and drills from the West Ham United Academy, with each player receiving a West Ham United International Academy camp t-shirt. Players excelling at this camp will be invited to the 2012 West Ham United International Academy National Residential Camp, staffed by the Academy coaches from the West Ham United Academy in London and directed by Academy Director Tony Carr. Players excelling there will be invited to London for a West Ham United Academy experience.

www.westhamacademyinternational.com

The fun and convenient way to bring soccer into your child’s life! The program was created by Dave Cartwright, Keystone’s Director of Player Development, and is designed to develop coordination, self-confidence, motor skills and fundamental soccer techniques through progressive structured sessions. Our philosophy is developed to encourage confidence and creativity with the ball.

To register for one of our programs click here.

Keystone Athletic Congratulate our Long long Serving Grifo

For the Full Story go To the link below

http://espn.go.com/blog/high-school/boys-soccer/post/_/id/1914/penn-state-picks-up-its-first-2013-prospect

The Grifos finished on top of their group with a 2-0-1 record beating MPS Portland Phoenix (ME), FASA (VA) and drawing 2-2 with Mid-Atlantic rivals, Ironbound Fury (NJ). Despite the draw with Ironbound, the Grifos led the group in points and goal differential.

The Grifos started a little nervous in their opener against MPS Portland as each team rapidly exchanged control of the ball for the first 15 minutes or so, going forward and missing many close chances. Minutes after coming into the game, midfielder Giovanni Mowrey opened the scoring with a strike from 12 yards. The Grifos appeared to compose themselves and take control of the game, tightening their defense and denying their opponents almost any scoring opportunities for the rest of the game. Midfielder A.J. Nardone also came off the bench and got the second goal. A few minutes before half, the Grifos were awarded a penalty kick after forward Kevin Waterman was tripped in the box. Kyle Willis converted the penalty and his teammates joined him for a brief celebration in the corner. Nardone would get the Grifos’ fourth and final goal in the second half.

In their second match, the Grifos beat FASA 2-1, with a close-range goal from defender Casey Ritsick on a set piece and a screamer from midfielder Dominique Haynes from 20 yards. FASA held the Grifos scoreless in the second half and snuck in a late goal amidst a little confusion in front of the net. With a win or tie against Ironbound, the Grifos would advance out of the group stage, something they had only accomplished once before in tournament play, when they won the Pocono Blast in May 2011 playing a year up.

Sunday night’s third and final group stage match versus Ironbound had all the makings of an exciting finish: lights, loud fans, tension on the field and the bench, and spectacular soccer. Each team had chances in the first half, the closest probably coming off a Kevin Waterman cross from the by-line to an arriving Mowrey whose shot from the edge of the area sailed high. Goalkeeper Andrew Drewchin was also forced to make a few clutch saves to keep the score tied at zero at the half. Shortly into the second half, midfielder Charlie Jerry put a cross in the box where forward Connor Floyd was waiting to put a half-volley in the back of the net. Moments later, Jerry fired a low scorcher from 30 yards that was deflected by the Ironbound keeper into the near post, ricocheted across the face of the goal, banged off the opposite post and rolled in. Particularly inspiring was the Gifos’ bulldog defense which was nothing short of flawless save the final seconds of the game, when a couple of late penalties led to two Ironbound goals in less than one minute. The fans held their breath and the Grifos held on to the draw to go through to the next round.

The Grifos met Coquitlam Metro Ford in the semifinals. Coquitlam finished atop Group A, beating and drawing with another Mid-Atlantic rival, TSF Academy Ginga, in their two group-stage meetings. After a scoreless first half, Coquitlam struck first early in the second half. Later in the half, Charlie Jerry answered with another one of his trademark, long-range, low-flying torpedoes to bring the score level at one a piece. But on the ensuing kickoff, a talented Coquitlam wing dribbled through multiple Grifos defenders and slotted home the game-winner. The Grifos were well-prepared going into the match but Coquitlam proved too much, beating the Keystone boys 2-1. The Grifos made club history, becoming the club’s first team to reach the semifinals at the Super Y North American Finals. The Grifos head back to Pennsylvania where they will enter winter training until March of 2012. They will compete in the MAPS EDP league in the spring.

The Grifos also say goodbye to Coach Dave Cartwright who has coached them for the last two years and has recently been promoted as Keystone’s Director of Soccer Operations. The Grifos are now being coached by Kevin Costello, a veteran soccer professional and long-time Keystone staff coach.

Stroudsburg -- Keystone Athletic announced today the appointment of David Cartwright as Director of Soccer Operations. Cartwright has served as Director of Player Development since joining the club in 2009, where he oversaw the Rising Tide Development Program and has coached numerous Grifos teams. Cartwright will follow Mike Composto, who announced last Monday that he is moving on after 11 years as club director.

“One of my greatest satisfactions since joining Keystone has been watching today’s U10 players graduate from the development curriculum and begin to flourish at the competitive travel level. Our Rising Tide curriculum is developing and identifying quality players at a much earlier age and finding the right path for them to be successful for years to come.”

Prior to joining Keystone Athletic, Cartwright was Director of Goalkeeping and Super Y League Coach for the Reading Rage. In two Super Y seasons at the Rage, and 3 at Keystone Cartwright had two teams qualify for Super Y Nationals. While still in his native UK, Cartwright coached at the West Wales and Peterborough United Development Academies, where he trained current Fulham and former Welsh national player Simon Davies. Cartwright has coached the Keystone Athletic U15B (now U16) to a Super Y Nationals berth in Florida this December.

Cartwright will begin the transition as Director immediately. “While I have some new ideas, my greatest interest at the moment is in simply building on the solid foundation that was built by Mike Composto.” Composto will remain an advisor to Cartwright until the beginning of next Spring season.

Dave and his wife, Jill, live in Easton with their two children Madison (4) and Alfie (9 mos).
 

Stroudsburg -- Keystone Athletic Executive Director, Mike Composto, has announced that he will be leaving the club in November to pursue a new career opportunity in Texas. Composto, who has served as the club’s executive director for the past 11 years says this was not an easy decision.

“With a heavy heart I have accepted [a new] position and have given my notice to Keystone Athletic. Needless to say this was a very difficult decision for me, one which I struggled with for many weeks. As you all know, change is inevitable and as difficult as it is, change helps us all grow, not only for my family at home, but my extended soccer family, all of you.  Change will bring new vision to the club, and provide a fresh environment of growth with new ideas, and new excitement.”

Composto’s legacy is one of unparalleled advancement in youth soccer in NE Pennsylvania, including a list of accomplishments like the area has never seen. He is largely responsible for the club’s growth from 10 to 40 teams over the past 11 years and implementing the club’s premier and development programs. Under Composto’s direction, Stroudsburg United Soccer Club and Pocono Mountain Youth Soccer Association merged in 2009 to become Keystone Athletic. The former Marine and Brooklyn native was also instrumental in establishing multiple affiliations with neighboring clubs to support the transition of young players from a development curriculum, through pre-travel and into a competitive travel program. Three years ago, Composto expanded the club’s premier exposure by securing a USL contract and the club now has teams competing in the Super Y and Super 20 divisions. Composto would still like to see his dream come true of adding a PDL team to that list. Composto brought true professional European partnerships to the club, first with AC Parma (Italy), then Perugia (Italy) and currently with West Ham United from the English Premier League. Keystone was the first club in Pennsylvania and New Jersey to claim such affiliations.

“When I was faced with tough decisions, I asked myself three questions: ‘Is it good for the club? Is it good for the game? Is it good for the player?’ If I could answer yes to all of these questions, I knew it was right.”

Composto also emphasized the importance of coaching education. When he joined, the club had one licensed coach. To encourage education, Composto instituted a policy where the club paid for coaching courses in exchange for a commitment to coach a youth team. Today the club boasts one of the largest staffs of licensed and professional coaches in the area. A firm believer in continuing education, Composto also conducted regular intra-club coaching clinics throughout the year to reinforce coaching best practices and club policies. Since he joined the club, college recruitment of players has been on the rise. More than 150 players from the club have played or are currently playing in college.

Recently, the club opened a beautiful new, 26-acre multi-field soccer complex in Stroudsburg, which Composto affectionately refers to as his “baby”. Composto oversaw much of the development of these fields which were played on for the first time in May of 2011. The club hopes to carry out his vision for further development of the property after his departure, with plans already in the works for landscaping around the playing fields. A visiting coach from a premier New Jersey club remarked, upon seeing the fields for the first time, “It just looks and smells like great soccer here.”

Sign up for Summer Soccer now for Stroudsburg and Tobyhannah Locations

http://www.sportssignup.com/Stroudsburg-United-Online-Registration.start

The U16 Grifos are currently undefeated in their PAGS Fall Season. The team recently traveled to Philadelphia where they played an extremely talented first place team, the Anderson Monarchs. During the exciting match the competition on the pitch was fierce, but in the end the Grifos prevailed. The Grifos improved their record to 4-0-1 to remain undefeated so far in league play.

One might think that a team with players representing 11 different high schools would not work together. But this is not the case for these young ladies coached by Hector Uribe. They all work very hard for one common goal, the success of the team. The team has posted two shutouts and has a goal differential of +11.

With four games remaining on their schedule, the Grifos are eager to finish the season with the hopes of remaining undefeated.

Good Luck Grifos!

Victorious and still reveling in the excitement of their first win of the season, the boys egos were quickly deflated by a fresh and talented squad. Despite all their efforts the score reflected a lopsided outcome. This did not deter them from fighting until the very end which speaks
volumes about their character. It was a pleasure to watch Match Fit's level of play and was a good lesson learned about skill, hustle, and teamwork. We as coaches should have had the boys better prepared so we take full responsibility for the defeat. Thanks for working so hard boys and never giving up!

Sunday gave the team a clean slate to work with and a realization that despite a set back on the previous day, there was still an opportunity for a second place finish in the tourney. There was no trouble bringing on their first half enthusiasm that we are so accustomed to seeing. The
second half of the match however, found the boys struggling to regain their first half rhythm, but they kept enough composure to settle into their second victory. It was great to see the teamwork focused on pulling out a victory for a fellow team mate as promised in the team huddle. Happy Birthday Liron!!

Our first match of the day was quite early which gave everyone an opportunity to enjoy the beautiful weather that the weekend had to offer and savor the victory before our late afternoon final match.

The tournament was a great venue for the boys and their families to spend quality time together. It's great seeing a common interest bringing people together and forming lasting friendships.

Thank you Keystone Athletic.

A mid-afternoon match pitted Match Fit against our next opponent Enco 98, which set the stage for our final match of the day. After convincing victories over ourselves and Abington Wolfpack the previous day, it seemed that there was a chink in their armor. Keystone Black played a hard fought match and came away just a little short losing 3-2, and Enco 98 played an excellent match coming away with a 1-1 tie. The intensity with which Enco 98 played against Match Fit had coach Garrett and I determined to have the boys in the right frame of mind for our final match. The boys had some unfinished business after being on the losing end of a late game tally against Enco 98 earlier in the season.

TEAM Keystone Grey did themselves proud by making it clear that they were playing with a mission. Through hard work and individual effort they came together to bring a convincing and a second place finish in the Fall Classic. Liron was able to put some icing on his cake by finding the back of the net in the final match. What a great gift and end to a beautiful weekend.

Coach Garrett and I are very proud of your accomplishment boys!! Thanks Keystone Athletic for giving all of us this opportunity to participate in a program that fosters individual talents in a team environment.

Additionally, on behalf of Keystone Grey, I would like to thank our opponents for supporting our club and your great sportsmanship through out the tournament. Congratulations Match Fit!

Good luck with your seasons!

Our Fall Festival Experience By Lexi Meisse (U13 Girls Player)

This is the fourth year that the U13 Girls Bull’ets participated in the Dale Marsh Fall Festival. It was a lot of fun. We really enjoyed ourselves. Even though we came in 3rd, we had tons of fun. Let me tell you about our weekend. 

On the first day, Saturday, we had our first game at 8:00 am. It was a blow out with our team winning 8-0. After the game, my teammates and celebrated and then went to go see on of the U14 boys teams play at the county field. We hung out there for a while and just chilled after our victory. After that game was over we went over to Burnley to watch some girls that we knew play their game.

 Then it was time for our 2nd game. We played long and hard and won 2-0. That gave us 6 points for the day and 1st place for our bracket. But the day was not over yet. We went to see the U14 boy’s team play again.

 After the boys game it was time for the Raffle. There were many beautifully decorated baskets. My favorites were the Money Tree basket, Sports basket and Movie & Candy basket. Many people that I knew won but I didn’t!! Oh well! maybe next year!

 Next it was time for concession stand duty. It wasn’t very busy, so some of my friends and I watched the U10 girls play by the softball fields. By the time we came back it was time to pack up the stand for the night and go home. So after doing so, we all said our goodbyes.

 The next morning, at 8:00 am, again, we came to the field ready for a hard, aggressive game. We were prepared, or so I thought. Our keeper injured herself the night before and could not play, so I played keeper. At half-time the score was 0-0. The second half a miracle had happened and she was ready to get in the goal. I played forward for the second half. Unfortunately, we had a lot of opportunities but did not score. We lost the game 1-0 in the final minutes of the game. We were done and came in 3rd place for the tournament.

 Our weekend at the festival was full of bruises, competition and soccer fun. I can’t wait until next year.

Soccer was at its finest this past weekend with Keystone Athletics U11 Boys Grey team competing both Saturday and Sunday 

Saturday, Keystone had an incredible first half with Dillon Possinger and Josh Blake rallying together for the drive to score, falling just short on goals. In the first half, at goalie was Antonios Stylianides who had 9 saves and kept the forwards to only 1 goal with the help from defensive backs Pierce O’Dowd and Jeremy Stoner. In the second half of the game, Brendan Zambrano played forward with unbelievable speed and agility while Christian Peeney kept the pressure on defense to help support Ronan Ryan and Nicholas Govus as goalies. 

On Sunday a fantastic fall feeling was in the air on Sunday when the Grey team traveled to Lehigh Valley University fields. The first half of the game Caleb Secor started as goalie for the Grey team with quick reflexes and save after save. At forward for the Grey team was Blake as striker, Possinger midfielder, Ryan left midfielder, and Stylianides right midfielder. Playing defense was O’Dowd, Delibero, and Stoner. Each player played with amazing skill and talent.

We are not sure what coach Shaun Below told his team at half time but the Grey team came out on the field on fire. The second half was dominated by the Grey team with each player continuing to put the pressure on the opposing team..

Kicking a corner kick for the Grey team was Blake who placed the ball in a beautiful position for Leo Goldshmid to score when opposing team showed up from nowhere to stop the shot on goal. Possinger and Blake did not give in and should be commended for their efforts on the field today. With 21 minutes into the game and Stylianides as goalie, the ball was driven into the goalie area where Stylianides charged the offensive to deflect the ball while Delibero covered his position to take the save for the Grey team.

"When John Mazza, President of PMYSA approached me about the idea of a merger, it made sense to me immediately," said Director of Soccer Operations, Mike Composto.  "Having a large number of players and coaches is vital to the development of players beccause it gives them options to play at appropriate levels based on their level of play." Keystone Athletic now has more that 1700 players.  Mazza said " this makes sense for us because players will have the opportunity to progress in this system to higher levels of competition.  Boys and girls have the chance to compete at the regional and national level through the Keystone Athletic Grifo premier and Super Y programs."

While the premier level is important for aspiring players, a vital part of the development structure is the developmental and intramural programs of Keystone Athletic.  These programs will continue to be emphasized and will be called the Keystone Athletic Rising Tide.  The Rising Tide program will maintain a fun and positive environment for players to learn and develop.  We will pool our resourses of coaching talent to develop our Rising Tide into the next generation of soccer stars. 

Check this website often for updates.  And please join our Keystone Athleltic Facebook page to keep up on the latest happenings at the club.  Share your favorite team photos and video clips on the Facebook page.