Training Gets Under Way

Today was the first day of training for the Pali Blues. Mother Nature cooperated with beautiful weather, and all the players showed up excited to train. With a good portion of our players still relocating to So-Cal, the next month of training will be focusing mostly on playing. Sessions will consist of limited touch tight space possession games progressing to unrestircted play to goals. Our goal is to have the players express themselves with free play while slowly instilling the style of play we will achieve later in the season.

We also want to send a shout out to all the male players that showed up. You guys are a critical piece to our pre-season!!

Karen Bardsley and Valerie Henderson Join the Blues

Forwards beware the Pali Blues just added two top goalkeepers to their roster with the signings of Karen Bardsley and Valerie Henderson.

Bardsley is one of two American-born players to be invited to the England Women’s U-19 International Training Camp. The Chino Hills native was selected to the squad for the 2004 UEFA Women’s U-19 Championships in Leipzig, Germany, helping guide England to the semifinals after playing all 360 minutes in net. She also had a stellar career at Cal State-Fullerton and was named the Big West Conference Goalkeeper of the Year three times (2004, 2005 and 2006).

Henderson also brings national team experience to the Blues. The UCLA product competed with the U.S. National Team at the 2006 FIFA World Championships in Russia and was named the Sierra Mist Woman of the Match after registering nine saves and earning a shutout in a 1-0 win over France. The former NSCAA/adidas All-American finished her collegiate career with 76 wins in goal for the Bruins.

Three More Players Added

The Blues just added three more players with National Team experience to the roster. Joining the Pali Blues are midfielder Jill Oakes, midfielder Brittany Klein and forward Elizabeth Bogus.

Jill Oakes earned her first cap with the full U.S. National Team at the 2005 Algarve Cup in Portugal. Oakes was a member of the U.S. Youth National Teams starting in 2001, and she was a top contributor to multiple championship teams. She played with the 2001 U-21 Nordic Cup championship team in Norway, 2002 U-19 FIFA Women’s World Championship, 2004 U-21 Nordic Cup championship in Iceland and the 2005 U-21 Nordic Cup championship in Sweden.

Brittany Klein also brings valuable national team experience to the Pali Blues. She played with the U-23 national select team at The Home Depot Center, and she was a pool member of the U-19 and U-20 national teams. Her national team experience started with the U-17 squad. In four seasons at Santa Clara University, she netted 15 goals and eight assists for a total of 38 points.

Elizabeth Bogus was a member of the U-21 National Team pool in 2004. The Arizona State University graduate tallied 31 goals and 18 assists for 80 points over her four-year career with the Sun Devils. The 2002 Gatorade Utah High School Player of the Year will join former ASU teammate Manya Makowski with the Blues this season.

More Video Highlights

Championship Game from Vegas

Home Opener

Our home opener is set for Saturday, May 17th at the "Stadium by the Sea" in the Pacific Palisades. You can get your season tickets now by checking out the website (www.bluessoccerclub.com) and clicking on the link - tickets. Season tickets will get preferred seating as well as other special offers including a Season Ticket Holder party. Season tickets are $45 for adults and $25 for kids.

Single game tickets will be available at the gate. $10 for adults, $8 for students with valid ID and $5 for kids under 12.

Picture Time!!!

Here are some pics from Vegas:

Joanna Haig going in for the save.

Kandace Wilson battling it out with two WCSC players.

Defender Kara Kabellis

Karen Bardsley saving yet another shot.

We are the champions!!!

Danesha Adams going in for the header.

Erika Prado winning this one in the air.

Midfielder Jill Oakes

Who's Scoring the Goals???

The answer to that is everyone. While Manya Makoski was the Tournament leader for the Blues in goals scored with six. Danesha Adams would be the points leader with five goals and two big assists. Erika Prado was next in scoring with three goals. Both Mele French and Kandace Wilson scored two a piece. Nicole Garbin, Sasha Andrews, Katy Cross, Leah Tapscott and Rachelle Snyder each tallied one goal.

Vegas Tournament Overview

Again, big apologizes for not being able to keep you updated from Vegas, but here some highlights from the games.

After our game against Ajax, the girls posted two big wins. An 8-0 victory over the Athleticos saw eight different players score. The club followed that up with a 9-0 win over the Legacy.

The following day, the Blues played the Denver Diamonds. Denver proved to be the toughest group game. Danesha Adams gave the Blues an early 1-0 lead, but Denver then scored two goals to take the 2-1 advantage. Facing their first deficit in team play, the Blues rallied off three straight goals to advance to the semifinal round. Erika Prado led the charge, registering two goals and an assist.

After the Denver game, the girls were able to rest a bit before it was time to play West Coast Soccer Club in the Semi-Final game. WCSC hails a pair of players from the Mexican national team, and the Blues saw aggressive defensive pressure, handling the ball quite well in those situations. Adams set up a Manya Makoski tally for the lone score of the game, and goalkeeper Joanna Haig held on for the 1-0 shutout.

In the finals of the Silver Mug Tournament, the Blues would again face the same team that they played in the opening contest of the weekend, Ajax. An Adams feed to Makoski gave the Blues an early 1-0 lead, and the club would not relinquish that advantage. A passionate effort from the entire Blues team eventually led to a 1-0 win and the tournament championship. Bardsley recorded the clean slate in goal during the first half, and Haig finished the shutout in the second half.

Technical Difficulties Resolved

We wanted to send a BIG apologize to anyone who visited the blog this weekend in hopes of getting an update from the Tournament. We had sever technical difficulties, which have finally be resolved.

One Game Down

No one likes to be awake at six in the morning, but the Pali Blues were down in the lobby ready to play their first official game together. The game against Ajax was mostly even with a few great chances, that unfortunately didn't pan out. Danesha had a one-on-one chance with the Ajax keeper, who somehow managed to block the close range shot. With only one practice as a team under our belt, we are pretty proud to have walked away with one point this morning, especially against a team that we plan to meet in the finals.

Check out some of the pics from the game:

Viva Las Vegas

We finally made it. Some girls decided to drive up, others flew in, while most took the team bus. After an hour and half training session - we ended over to P.F. Chang's for a team dinner for some downtime. Captain Kendall Fletcher led a team meeting before the girls headed back to bed to prepare for the first game of the tournament.

The Blues Head to Vegas for the Silver Mug Tournament

The Pali Blues are off to Vegas tomorrow morning for our first official tournament - the Silver Mug Tournament. We start playing Saturday morning against Ajax, up next is Athleticos and the Legacy to conclude a busy Saturday, with another game Sunday morning against the Denver Diamonds before we, hopefully, head over to the semifinal round.

We're Up Running

Welcome to the Pali Blues Blog. Here's where you'll find all sorts of updates and news. Check in often to see what's going on with the Pali Blues. And of course, don't forget to send us comments - we would love to know what our fans are thinking!!!!