The annual Snickers U.S. Youth Soccer national championships will be held July 24-28 at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Germantown, Md. Soccer America continues its preview of the youth finals with a look at the under-16 and under-17 competitions. It concludes the previews with the U-18 and U-19 previews Tuesday.

UNDER-16 BOYS

Sereno (Phoenix, Ariz.) Golden Eagles
Michigan Wolves
Atlanta Fire
FC Delco (Pa.) Dynamo II
FC DELCO DYNAMO II was the winner of the inaugural under-15 national title in 2001 and is going for the club's sixth boys title in 12 years. Coach John Hingley has had teams in the nationals for six straight years, winning three times. Delco is led by midfielder Chris Germani, midfielders Stephen King and Danny DeMasters. The U-16 boys were the only one of five SERENO GOLDEN EAGLES teams to win their Region IV finals. They are led by midfielder-forward Richard Frank, who is headed to the Arsenal's soccer academy. Other offensive threats are Robert Findley, cousin of Sacramento Kings star guard Mike Bibby, and Brandon McDonald, while Daniel Newell leads the defense. McDonald scored midway in the second half to give the Golden Eagles a 1-0 win against the Irvine Strikers to revenge last year's loss in the Region IV U-15 finals. Former Santa Clara University head coach Mitch Murray will assume the reins of the U-16 Eagles after the nationals. Harry Demos, who coached the U-16s for seven years, will start over again at the under-11 level. Two-time Region II champion MICHIGAN WOLVES are led by forward Jacob Peterson and midfielders Kanzo Webster and Joshua Mahoney. The ATLANTA FIRE, which played in last year's U-15 finals as the Alpharetta (Ga.) Golden Eagles, is led by U-17 national team defenders Kyle Helton and Cameron Lewis.

UNDER-17 BOYS

Irvine (Calif.) Strikers
Chicago Magic
Dallas Texans Red
Bethesda (Md.) Alliance
The IRVINE STRIKERS and DALLAS TEXANS RED reached last year's under-16 final four. The Texans won their third straight Region III crown, with Ramon Nunez getting two goals in a 6-1 title win against Bear Creek (Texas). Nunez, who had four goals in last year's national finals, is a member of the U.S. under-18 national team. John Hunter Freeman also has U.S. under-17 and under-18 team experience. The Strikers scored twice in the first eight minutes to beat Las Vegas Premier, 3-0. Matt Basin is the top scorer for the California team. Andrew Kartunen, also a member of the U.S. U-18 team, is a strong goalkeeper. Bethesda Arsenal won the East U-14 regionals but didn't make it out of state play the next two years. It subsequently merged with a rival team, Burtonsville Olympics, added a few players, changed its name to BETHESDA ALLIANCE and hired veteran coach Graham Ramsay, who rotates all 18 players. Brian Joyce scored in overtime to give the Alliance, one of three Bethesda regional champions, a 1-0 win against Beadling (Pa.) in the Region I final. Likewise, the CHICAGO MAGIC won three regional titles. The U-17 Magic is led by defender Jed Zayner, who is being courted by several European clubs. Other top players include defender Brad Guzan, midfielder Brian Pasierb, forward Matt Wieclaw and goalkeeper Cole Glassner.

UNDER-16 GIRLS

VISTA (Alexandria, Va.) Firestars
Busch (St. Louis)
Houston Challenge
West Valley (West Hills, Calif.) Samba
BUSCH was the runner-up in last year's under-15 girls field. It repeated its regional sweep, holding all five foes scoreless, making it 10 straight shutout games over two years. Charlie Winchell, who had five goals in the 2001 nationals, is a force up front. The HOUSTON CHALLENGE won for the Region III title for the second time in three years, beating Marietta (Ga.) United Quest, 2-0. Nine members of the five-time South Texas champion team bypassed high school competition this spring to play with the club travel team against college-level competition. Dana Hall is outstanding in goal for a team with five Regional players. Jesse Paris' overtime goal gave the four-time state champion VISTA FIRESTARS a 1-0 win over FC Delco in the Region I final. Midfielder-forward K. Nataly Arias is on the national under-16 team. Defender-midfielder Sara Gulley is another mainstay for VISTA. The WEST VALLEY SAMBA outscored its opponents, 16-0, in Region IV competition. It has 13 ODP players.

UNDER-17 GIRLS

Huntington (N.Y.) Fury
Tsunami (Minn.) Sota
Gwinnett (Ga.) Phoenix Red
Pleasanton (Calif.) Rage
The GWINNETT PHOENIX RED, which won last year's U-16 national title, got hat tricks from Ashley Foster (in an eight-minute span in the second half) and Clemson-bound Courtney Foster (no relation) in a 6-0 rout of the Raleigh Spartans Elite in the Region III final. Forward Elizabeth Guess has committed to North Carolina. Forward Ashley Foster was invited to the under-19 national team training camp but suffered an ACL injury early in the camp. The Region IV champion PLEASANTON RAGE beat Gwinnett, 4-1, at the Houston Shootout. The Rage, winner of the Region IV U-15 title in 2000 as the San Ramon Illusion, is led by Darby Kroyer, Judy Coffman and Julia Schnugg, who have scored 51 goals. Another talented forward, Tina Estrada, has returned from an ACL injury, but star forward Katie Mahoney was lost with a knee injury suffered at regional camp. Cory Alexander is the goalie, replacing the injured Kim Bingham. TSUNAMI SOTA won Minnesota titles in 2001 and 2002 after being formed in November 2000. Caroline Smith is the top scorer for Sota, whose players have a grade point average of 3.9. Midfielder-forward Katherine Krambeer is on the U.S. U-17 team roster. Sarah Johnson and Becky Junkermeier are strong midfielders. The HUNTINGTON FURY is one of two Huntington clubs to repeat as Region I champions and a four-time state champion.