Pateadores LA Blue Boys U13 team reached the finals of the prestigious 2012 Surf Thanksgiving Tournament.
The Pateadores LA Blue team, coached by Carlos Santiesteban, lost its opener but showed its character when it went on to win its next three consecutive games before falling to a talented Surf squad in the finals.
The tournament highlights included a 3-0 thrashing of Notts Forest, and a 1-0 nail-victory over FC Golden State White that required the Pats keeper to make an amazing save on a penalty shot in order to preserve the shutout. The semi-final win over Sereno 00 Boys White from Arizona was notable for the Pats two lovely goals in the second half. Throughout the Thanksgiving weekend, the team showed its ability to use crisp passing, ball possession and solid defense to wear-down its opponents.
Thanks to the team’s strong showing at the tournament, in which it defeated highly ranked teams, the Pateadores LA Blue team has been bumped up to the sixth best team in the California South Division out of the 353 teams in that group.