Wisconsin Soccer Central

The SC Waukesha Blue Under-17 boys team got off to a perfect start at the U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships.

Colin Koerber (Hartland Arrowhead) and Kai Bottum (East Troy) scored in the opening quarter hour and Colin Dibb (Hartland Arrowhead) added two goals in a 4-minute span in the second half as the Wisconsin side thumped California's Santa Clara Sporting 4-0 Tuesday afternoon in its opening match at the tournament in Overland Park, Kan.

Tyler Moore (Brookfield Central) and Dominic Spano (Kettle Moraine) combined on the clean sheet for SC Waukesha, which faces Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley United at 8:30 a.m. Thursday as Group A play continues. LVU United lost to Ohio's Cincinnati United Premier Crew Juniors Gold 2-1 on Tuesday, with an 84th-minute goal the difference.

Koerber got things started early for SC Waukesha, heading in a corner kick by John Schwalbach (Kettle Moraine) just 6 minutes in, and Bottum doubled the lead off an assist from Mitch Krismer (Waukesha Catholic Memorial) in the 15th.

Dibb – who has committed to UW-Milwaukee for 2014 – sealed the outcome with goals in the 68th and 72nd, the first set up by Brody Kraussel (Muskego) and the second by Austin Gorenc (Waukesha South). Moore played the opening 68 minutes in goal before Spano finished off the shutout.

SC Waukesha, the first state boys team to play at nationals since the FC Milwaukee Under-17s in 2007, closes out pool play against CUP Crew Juniors Gold on Friday night – the Ohio side beat SC Waukesha 6-0 in the Region II final last month in Des Moines, Iowa. The winners of the two four-team groups will play Sunday morning for the national championship.

• University of Wisconsin midfielder Drew Conner and the Chicago Fire Academy tied California's Pateadores ANA 1-1 in their first match in Under-19 play.
• Marquette recruit Jack Alberts and his Raiders FC Premier (Ill.) side rolled past Florida's Team Boca 4-1 in an Under-18 opener.
• Ashley Handwork, who will start her college career at Marquette next month, scored both goals as Illinois' Team Chicago Academy-Botafogo topped Missouri's Lou Fusz Wipke 2-1 in Under-18 girls play. Two more Team Botafogo players, Katie Ciesiulka and Handwork's younger sister Ashley, have committed to the Golden Eagles for 2014.
• Incoming Marquette freshman Elizabeth Bartels and Nebraska's LSC EGA Bravo tied So Cal Blues-Dido 2-2 in Under-19 girls action.