UPDATE June 30th, 2008 - The Aztec U17 girls wrapped up a memorable season with a 1-2-0 record at regionals. Drawn into the "Group of Death" the Aztecs played well in losses to the McLean Freedom from Virginia (ranked 2nd in the country and 1st in the region) and New York's Albertson Fury (ranked 5th in the country and 4th in the region), and earned a solid win over the West Virginia champion EPIC Stars. The ladies end a fine season ranked 3rd in the state, 13th in the region, and 21st in the country.

Beverly / Amesbury, MA – June 16, 2008 - In the first season of the NESS - Aztec merger and affiliation with Everton FC of England's Barclays Premier League, the New England Aztec soccer association finished with its first ever state championship. After five consecutive years in the state semifinals, the Aztec U17 girls reached the top of the mountain and topped the Stars of MA 4-2 in overtime to capture the organization's first ever state championship on June 15th. The girls now take that title and the Mass. Premier League (MAPLE) D1 Championship to Region I Championships in Portland, ME on June 26th to July 1st.

The State Cup came to an end with the U18 boys falling in the finals to back-to-back champion Juventus on June 15th and the U14 Boys finishing as semifinalists after falling on June 14th to the eventual back-to-back champion Expos. But with the many fine Aztec and NESS seasons coming to a close after the club's best season ever, here is one last look back at all the successes enjoyed by many of NE Aztec U13 - U18 youth teams during the 2008 season.

U18's - The Aztec U18 boys finished 3-2-2 in MAPLE's D1 and as state runner up after becoming the first ever Aztec boys team to reach a state championship match. The boys also won the NH Sportsplex Tournament back in March.

The NESS U18 boys finished their season 5-0-1 according to the MAPLE Web site, winning MAPLE-D.

The Aztec U18 Girls wrapped up their Aztec youth career 5-2-0 earning second place in MAPLE D1 after a season ending victory over the Scorpions and finishing an OT loss short of qualifying for state cup. The ladies did win the Scorpion Bowl in March.

U17's - STATE CHAMPS - After many times a bridesmaid, finally a bride. A 4-2 OT win over their old rival the Stars of MA, the Aztec U17 Girls capped a 6-0-1 MAPLE season with the State Cup crown. The girls also won their group at the PDA College Showcase tournament over Memorial Day Weekend.

On the boy’s side, the Aztec U17s finished in second place in MAPLE's D2 with a 4-1-2 record and are currently battling with Roma and Storm for a spot in D1 next year.

U16's - The Aztec U16 Boys finished 5-1-1 and in second in MAPLE-D by virtue of goal differential. Although the boys lost a promotion match to Explosion for a chance at D2, it was still a successful year for the boys in their first year out of the Mass. Soccer Conference (MASC) and in MAPLE, and they must be considered the favorite to win MAPLE-D and move up to D2 as 17s next year. As for the Aztec U16 girls, a 4-2-1 record was good for third place in MAPLE D2, as the ladies also won the Salem State St. Patrick's Day Open.

U15's - The Aztec U15 Boys finished 6-0-1 to win MAPLE D and move up to D2 next year, while the NESS U15 boys finished 3-2-2 in MASC before clinching a spot in MAPLE-D next year along with Synergy, Valeo, and Gold Star after a successful qualifying tournament.

As for the girls, both the Aztec and NESS girls qualified for state cup, marking the first time two NE Aztec teams advanced to State Cup in the same age group. The Aztec U15s finished 6-1-0 in second in MAPLE's D1, winning the Virginia Beach Spring Classic in March, while the U15 NESS "Storm" girls finished 5-1-1 to win MAPLE-D, also winning the Needham Memorial Weekend tournament. The other NESS U15 girls, despite missing out on a chance to move from MASC to MAPLE, had a fine 5-1-1 season to finish second in their MASC group.

U14's - On the boy’s side, the Aztec U14s finished 5-2-0 for second in MAPLE's D1 and were state semifinalists for the first time. The boys also won their first tournament title with a victory in the Delta FC Memorial Weekend Tournament. The NESS boys, meanwhile, finished 4-2-1 for second place in MAPLE-D and earned promotion to D2 after beating Berkshire and Unity in promotion matches.

As for the girls, the Aztec U14-W finished second in D2 with a 4-2-1 record, tied on points for first. They are currently battling it out with the Blackhawks for a trip to D1. The Aztec U14-R girls, meanwhile, will join their counterparts in MAPLE, earning a spot in MAPLE-D with victories over Metro Black Magic, Inter, and the SS Stingrays in the qualifying tournament.

U13's - Both the Aztec U13 Girls and U13 Boys won their MAPLE-D divisions and move into D2 for next year with 6-1-0 and 7-0-0 records, respectively The girls also won the Virginia Beach Classic in March, while the Boys took the Delta FC Memorial Weekend Tournament. Meanwhile, while the NESS U13 girls finished 4-3-0, barely missing a chance at promotion matches by finishing 3rd in MAPLE-D, the girls did win the Cape Cod Challenge Memorial Weekend tournament to cap an excellent spring season.

All told, the combined spring regular season record for the 21 U13-U18 NESS & Aztec teams in the NE Aztec soccer association was an astounding 91-37-16 with six division titles, five Memorial Weekend tournament championships, five March spring tournament championships, six spots in State Cup, three semifinalists, two state finalists, and one state champion, cementing NE Aztec's status as THE premier soccer association North of Boston.
 
Rosters of State Cup Champions, Finalists, and Semifinalists Below

Aztec U17 Girls - STATE CHAMPIONS
Melissa Arn, North Andover   
Alex Bengston, Andover
Shayla Bergeron, Hudson (NH)
Taylor Bresnahan, Newburyport
Cara Connors, Boxford   
Marielle Elie, Dracut   
Alana Figurido, Hamilton  
Bianca Gallo, Peabody
Jillian Kinter, Salisbury
Eliza Marshall, North Andover  
Laura Muise, Newburyport
Erin Quinlan, Saugus
Sarah Riggert, Groton   
Casey Schulze, Chelmsford
Christine Silva, Stoneham

Aztec U18 Boys - Finalists
Stefan Allard, Boxborough
Nicholas Allman, Newburyport  
Sean Bishop, Danvers  
Joshua Boyce, Peabody
Christopher Ciampa, Danvers   
Justin Colella, Wilmington
Paul Correia, Revere
Timothy Davison, Danvers
Evan Ersing, Beverly
Bryan Lee, Rockport
Nicholas LoCoco, Gloucester    
Philip Marchwinski, Danvers   
Kevin McCarthy, Danvers
Amon Mohammadi, Stoneham   
William Nickerson, Middleton
Ali Olia, Boxford   
Shane O'Neill, Gloucester
Jared Rizzo, Peabody

Aztec U14 Boys - semifinalists
Grant Bean, North Andover
Andrew Burnham, Rockport
Chandler Burnham, Rockport  
Timothy Chiang, North Andover   
Gregory Conrad, Peabody  
Brady Forcier, Middleton  
Conor Leahy, Beverly   
Colin Mahoney, Peabody  
Ryan McManus, Rockport
Samuel Milbury, Peabody
Maximilian Montanari, Wenham   
Taylor Perkins, Andover
Deklan Robinson, Hamilton  
Ryan Simpson, North Andover   
Alexander Sullivan, North Andover   
Cameron Tibert, Rockport  
Brendan Varney, North Andover  
Sherwin Yamin, North Andover

NEW ENGLAND AZTEC - NIL SATIS NISI OPTIMUM - NOTHING BUT THE BEST IS GOOD ENOUGH