March 14, 2005

Queens, NY - This past weekend, St. John's University women's soccer head coach Ian Stone coached the Eastern New York South Under-15 girls ODP team to the 2005 US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (ODP) National Championship at Russell Creek Park in Plano, TX. The team, consisting of players from Long Island and the five New York City boroughs, took home the first-ever US Youth Soccer ODP title for their region.

In the championship game on Sunday, the Stone-led Eastern New York team beat Washington, 1-0 on a penalty kick in the 29th minute for the title. They advanced to the finals with a 2-1 double overtime win over Georgia, as Eastern New York found the back of the net in the final minute of the second overtime session.

In late June 2004, Stone coached this team to the regional championship in Kirkwood, DE, advancing the Eastern New York squad to Plano, TX. The Eastern New York South squad was the champion of Region I, consisting of 16 teams ranging from New England all the way down to Virginia. They defeated Eastern Pennsylvania in the semifinals and came back to knock off New Jersey in the championship game.

Stone, who has coached in the Olympic Development Program for the last four years, won the region for the first time in 2001, losing the national championship match in double overtime in early 2002.