2013 Novi Jaguar Invitational Champions!

2013 Grand Rapids Crew Cup Champions
Vardar U9 Girls

May 2013 - Vardar Vardar U9 Girls Are Champs!

The Vardar U9 Girls recently won the Grand Rapids Crew Cup held in April. Congratulations girls!
 

The Vardar-Canada Soccer Club announces a new affiliate club located in Canada.  Please visit @ www.VardarCanada.com

May 2013 - Six Vardar Teams Head to State Cup Quarterfinals

Following Round of 16 action May 4-5, six Vardar teams are heading to the Michigan State Cup Quarterfinals to be held May 18 at the Saginaw Township Soccer Complex.

See the times and field numbers below. Best of luck to our Vardar boys and girls!

• 9:30 AM -- Vardar U18 Boys -- Field #3
• 9:30 AM -- Vardar U14 Boys -- Field #7
• 12:00PM --Vardar U15 Boys -- Field #1
• 2:30 PM -- Vardar U13 Boys -- Field #10
• 2:30 PM -- Vardar Ann Arbor U16 Boys -- Field #3
• 4:30 PM -- Vardar U13 Girls -- Field #9

The team next plays in the Jaguar Invitational, May 10-12th.

2013 CUP Elite Invitational Champions!
Vardar U12 Boys

April 2013 - The Vardar '01 U12 Boys traveled to Cincinnati this past weekend to participate in the Cincinnati United Premier Elite Invitational. The boys won all four games scoring 29 goals while giving up only 1. The boys beat the CUP CREW JUNIORS GOLD 3-0 in the championship game.

The team next plays in the Jaguar Invitational, May 10-12th.

Big Cat 6th Grade-Rumble in the Jungle BASKETBALL Champions
Vardar U12 Boys

Adam Brenner, Grant Ellison, Ryan Gray, Josh Kepczynski, Justin Lupenec, Devin Murray, Ben Ofeimu, Billy Zimmer.

March 2013 - VARDAR U12 Boys Know How To Hoop Too!

Vardar wins Big Cat 6th Grade-Rumble in the Jungle BASKETBALL Championship for the SECOND year in a row. Yes, BASKETBALL!

The Vardar U12 boys are not just good on the soccer field but they are great on the basketball court too. The basketball team is made-up of all Vardar U12 soccer players and 1 former player. Morris Lupenec coached the boys in the 6th Grade Elite Division -Big Cat Basketball League in South Lyon, MI.

The boys did awesome with 17 wins and 3 loses in the regular season; and then after battling for FIVE more straight wins in the play-off, they took home the Championship 22-3. This is a SECOND championship for the boys, who also won the Big Cat 5th Grade Elite Division Championship in 2012 going 24-1.

GO VARDAR- TAKE IT TO THE HOOP!
FANTASTIC YEAR! - Adam Brenner, Grant Ellison, Ryan Gray, Josh Kepczynski, Justin Lupenec, Devin Murray, Ben Ofeimu, Billy Zimmer.

Annandale Premier Cup 2013 Champions (Virginia)
Vardar U15 Boys

March 2013 - The Vardar U15 boys, coached by Morris Lupenec, scored 14 goals while only giving up two, enroute to the Annandale Premier Cup 2013 Championship held in Virginia. Vardar played OCYS of FL (3-0); Arlington Impact (5-0); Beachside of CT (4-1) and then Sunrise Elite of FL in the championship game winning 2-1. Sunrise was ranked the second team in the nation by Got Soccer. Congratulations U15 Boys!

February 28, 2013 - U.S. Under-20 captain and Holly, Mich., native Caleb Stanko has spent the past couple of years moving his way up the totem pole at SC Freiburg in Germany. The 19-year-old has typically played in the midfield, but for Freiburg’s U-23s he has regularly gotten the call at center back.

“The last six or seven games with Freiburg I’ve played at center back, which was unusual because I’m not a typical center back,” Stanko said.

A defining characteristic of the U-20 MNT is the ability for many of the players to take on interchangeable roles, and the team captain certainly is one of the more visible figures. The USA is preparing for Tuesday’s important quarterfinal match against Canada in the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship in Puebla, Mexico (6 p.m. ET, FOX Soccer, Univision Deportes), and the winner earns a berth to the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey. www.ussoccer.com/News

Las Vegas Mayor's Cup International Showcase 2013 Champions
Vardar U15 Girls (Red)

February 18, 2013 - The Vardar U15 Girls (Red) team competed at the Las Vegas Mayor’s Cup Showcase 2013 on Presidents Day weekend; the girls worked hard, played smart, played two games short sided (10 v 11), played all games without subs, dug down deep and did what nobody at the tournament expected. They won the event and brought home the Championship Cup and the respect of all the teams they played and tournament organizers.

With only eight girls from our team (Emily Artzberger, Kristin Hansel, Emily Parker, Karina Parker, Sarah Pieciak, Caitlin Richardson, Georgeanne Verbeek and Carolyn Zhou) and three guest players from Next Level Empire we powered thru and won. In the first two games we played 10v11 and beat Diamond Bar Legacy Glory 2-0 and tied Heat FC 98 MB 0-0 (missed a penalty kick). In the next game we played 11v11 (no subs) and beat Las Vegas Neon 98 6-0. In the semi-final game we played 11v11 (no subs) and beat Coastal Delta Selects 1-0 to advance to the championship game. As in the previous two games we played 11v11 (no subs) against Heat FC 98 MB and beat them 2-1 on set plays.

Congratulations Girls!

February 18, 2013 - PUEBLA, Mexico – The U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team earned an important three points to open the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship with a 2-1 victory against Haiti at Estadio Olímpico Universitario Lobos BUAP.

Former Vardar Academy player, Caleb Stanko, wore the captain's armband as he started at the centerback position.

For more information about the game, click on the provided link - www.ussoccer.com/News

February 11, 2013 - The rosters and schedule have been announced for the Elite Clubs National League Player Development Program event to be held Feb. 16-17 in Detroit.

The event will be held at the University of Michigan's indoor Oosterbaan Field House, with some of the best players from the following ECNL clubs in the Midwest: Carmel United (Ind.), Chicago Sockers (Ill.), Internationals (Ohio), Michigan Hawks (Mich.), Ohio Elite (Ohio), Ohio Premier Eagles (Ohio), Sporting Blue Valley (Kan.) and Vardar (Mich.).

For a full roster of the participating players, including team assignments for this event, click here.

The full schedule of events for the Detroit ECNL PDP is available here

Vardar 02 Girls - Disney Junior Soccer Showcase U11 Premier Champions

Vardar 02 Girls - Disney Junior Soccer Showcase U11 Premier Champions

September 2012 - In Orlando, FL over Thanksgiving weekend, Vardar 02 girls became the Disney Junior Soccer Showcase U11 Premier Champions.

Facing opponents from North Carolina, Florida, and Georgia, the girls had the opportunity for the first time to see how they would fare against teams from outside of the Midwest. This young, committed team rose to the occasion and throughout the weekend every player contributed to the team’s success.

They scored 18 goals and gave up only four across five games and had one parent from an opposing team asking “How do girls from Michigan learn to play like that?” Excellent job girls, congratulations!

Vardar 02 Boys - 2012 Genesee Cup Champions

September 2012 - The Vardar 02 Boys are back to back winners in two tournaments this fall. The team scored 31 goals in four games giving up only two goals enroute to the Genessee Cup Championship. Then the team were repeat champions at the Cusa Mead Cup winning the U11 age division with a 2-0 finale

Back-to-Back Mead CUSA Cup Champions 2012 – U11 Girls Five Star Division!

September 2012 - Congratulations to Vardar 02 girls on their 2nd consecutive championship at Ohio’s Mead Cup. The girls went an impressive 5-0-0, scoring 33 goals for with 5 against. It was an all Michigan final with Vardar defeating Waza 02 Black 2-1. It was an awesome team effort by all. Congratulations girls!

2012 Mead Cusa Cup U12 11v11 5-Star Champions

Each age group/gender awarded the Best 11 at the awards ceremonies on the finals day of the National Championships.  Each player received a gift from the National Guard.

Vardar Boys under-15’s on the road to Shanghai, China

Following twelve gruelling months of local, regional, national and international competitions – 320 of the best under-15 footballers in the world are travelling to Shanghai this week, for the World Finals of the 2012 Manchester United Premier Cup (MUPC)

The top twenty from over 8,000 teams will wait nervously whilst the Opening Ceremony & Draw takes place at the Holiday Inn Shanghai, Pudong Kangqiao, on Saturday 21st July 2012 at 20:00hrs with surprise guests alongside the teams, family and friends.  READ MORE...

Vardar Boys win U13 and U14 State Cup Championships

At the U13 age, the Vardar 99 boys battled it out against the Michigan Wolves on an extremely windy day. Wolves scored 30 seconds into the game. Vardar battled back and scored a goal minutes before the first half ended when Anthony Wells netted a pass sent by Vince Manzo. The game remained tied for the second half forcing overtime. In the first overtime, Cole Owen-Tunner shot the game winning goal off a corner kick. Vardar was able to stop the Wolves offense and secure the win following the second overtime.  At the U14 age, Vardar overcame the Grand Rapids Crew Juniors by a score of 4-3.

Both teams will now represent Michigan in the US Youth Soccer Region II Championships to be held in Saginaw, MI. Round robin games will take place Saturday, June 23 through Monday, June 25, with semifinal matches Tuesday, June 26. The US Youth Soccer Region II Champions will be crowned following final games Wednesday, June 27.

The other state associations represented include Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio South, Ohio North, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Regional winners of the U-14 through U-19 Boys and Girls brackets will earn a berth to the 2012 US Youth Soccer National Championships presented by the National Guard July 24-29 at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, S.C.

Vardar Boys win at 2012 Manchester United Premier Cup

To qualify for the world tournament, the Vardar squad won six games and tied one over the course of the MUPC U.S. event held May 26-28 at the Nike headquarters in Beaverton, OR. In the championship game, Vardar faced Real So Cal and came away with a 1-0 win on a goal scored by Clarkston resident Jimmy Todd. In addition to winning the tournament trophy, the Vardar boys earned the all-expenses paid trip to China for the World Final to be held July 20-23 in Shanghai.

Vardar started the U.S. event with a 2-1 win over San Diego Surf on goals scored by Travis Harrington of Macomb Twp. In a second qualifying game Vardar outscored St. Louis Scott Gallagher 3-0 with two goals by Nash Popovic of Rochester Hills and one by Todd. Game three pitted Vardar against Sockers FC with a 0-0 outcome. A fourth qualifying game had Vardar come out ahead of the Clearwater Chargers 2-0 with goals scored Popovic and AJ Shaw of Lake Orion. Then in the Quarterfinal, Vardar faced the Nomads from Southern California and came out ahead with a 2-0 win from goals scored by Jake Rosen of Livonia and Tommy Dokho of Royal Oak. In the semi-final Popovic scored two more goals to give Vardar the edge over the Fullerton Rangers 2-1. For his prolific scoring, Popovic won the MUPC Golden Boot Award (six goals total). This is the second year in a row that Popovic has earned the Golden Boot.

On the defensive end, Jake Townsley of Sterling Heights started in goal and earned four shut-outs giving up only one goal in five games. Following a minor injury to Townsley, Pearce Skinner of Grand Blanc, came into goal and played the semi-final and final giving up only one goal and earning the final shut-out.
“We had solid goal-keeping for sure,” said Morris Lupenec, Vardar Director of Coaching, “but our overall defensive effort was great too. Before the tournament even started I had a good feeling with this core of kids. They have great team chemistry and worked hard throughout . I couldn’t be prouder of them.”

The Vardar squad also included: Connor McDevitt of Rochester Hills, Giuseppe Vitale of Washington, Michael Wetungu of Rochester Hills, Willie Maddox of Troy, Zack Castle of Pleasant Ridge, Duncan Holman of Bay City and Mitch Guitar of Troy. Lupenec of Rochester Hills and Eric Pogue of Royal Oak coached the team.