For DASC 10 year anniversary we'll be sharing 10 stories to remember what pillars built DASC, the memories from before the unification, during and after merging the Sioux Falls soccer entities. 

For our third story we are going back just one year to the summer of 2018 all the way out to West Chester Ohio for the Midwest Region II Presidents Cup Tournament.

The 2005 DASC U13 Girls group went out to their first regional event with the expectation of having a great time and playing against some of the region’s best teams. Nobody could have predicted the magical run these girls would go on. The 2005 DASC U13 Girls would become DASC’s 1st, and currently only team, to play in a National Championship Game.

With Presidents Cup Regionals being so far away, the team chose to hire a bus for the days of the tournament. The bus trip to the event was a bonding experience that many believe created the glue that pulled this team together.

Lead by Augustana Coach Brandon Barkus, and his assistant Curtis Schaeffer, the team got off to a nervous start squeezing out a controversial 1-0 victory in their 1st game. That close call was followed by 2 comfortable victories to finish out the group phase of Regionals, setting up a tough semi-final clash against a team from Illinois.

This game was an epic battle. DASC went 1-0 down early, and produced a display of defensive resilience to keep the score at 1-0. That effort paid off with 3 minutes remaining when a beautiful pass from Mia Mullenmeister setup Elsie Odney to send the game into overtime.

Again in overtime, DASC conceded very early, and spent most of the time defending. Once again, the defensive determination paid off, as Hailee Christensen stepped up to score a memorable free kick from 35 yards out with 1 minute remaining in the game, creating a euphoric response from the DASC players and fans. This sent the match into penalty kicks. Katie Spicer in goal proved to be the hero saving 3 out of 5 penalties and giving DASC the victory.

The regional final a day later was a rematch against the 1st opponents of the tournament. This time, there were no close calls as DASC ran out comfortable winners bringing home the club’s 2nd Presidents Cup Regional Title.

A month later the team headed to Indianapolis to play in the National Championship Tournament. The girls again started out confidently with wins over Pipeline Black from Maryland, and Dallas Sting from Texas. They then came up against FC Nova, who were the Western Champions from Idaho, tying the group game 3-3 (the 1st goals FC Nova had conceded in the event).

This put DASC U13 Girls into the National Championship Game against FC Nova for a 2nd time. This was the 1st time any South Dakota Team at any level had ever played for a National Title.

Unfortunately the game did not go our way with FC Nova running out comfortable winners.

The team returned as National Presidents Cup Runners Up, and having won the fair play award at the National Finals.

This run sparked a lot of excitement in the Sioux Falls Soccer Community. It has inspired other DASC Teams to dream of winning Presidents Cup Regionals. These girls, lead by a calm and experienced set of coaches, displayed amazing hard work and positive attitudes. They proved that it is possible for a South Dakota team to get to a National Final, and maybe even become National Champions.

In 2019, DASC is sending 8 Teams to Presidents Cup Regionals in June (including the 2005 Girls again). They all go with dreams of repeating and maybe even exceeding what the 2018 U13 Girls achieved. #morethanaclub