Not even U-11 FC Boys 96 coach Ralph Black envisioned his squad being this good.

After unveiling a 13-0 record during regular season action, The FC Boys 96 squad won six consecutive games in the end of the year Challenge Cup tournament, taking first place in their U-11 Player Development Division 1-A, which is the highest level of competition offered in Washington for their specific age group.

In the championship tilt, they defeated Eastside during a penalty kick shootout overtime session on Jan. 27 in Tukwila.

“After two halves and two overtimes we were tied at 0-0,” Black said. “In the shootout we went 4-for-4 and they went 2-for-4. The pressure was on and we made all of our kicks in penalty shots. That’s so impressive for 11-year-old kids to not miss a penalty kick. It was awesome to see those kids perform in that kind of pressure situation.”

Players scoring during the penalty kick portion of the championship game included Tyler Black, Hassani Dotson, Kasey French and Lorenzo Ramos.

Black was impressed with his teams’ focus throughout the six week time period that encompassed the Challenge Cup.

“We had one game a week for the past six weeks until the semi-finals and finals. Those games were on back to back days,” Black said. “We went 6-0 and won the championship. When that final whistle blew, you could just see the excitement on the faces of our players. At the beginning of the year people were saying that we weren’t even in the top 6 or 7 in the state.”

Black said his team faced stiff competition in the final tournament of the season.

“There’s no question that winning the U-11 state championship was an incredible feat,” he said. “Every week there was a new challenge and every week we found a way to win. We went up against the best teams in the state and to accomplish what we did on the field is absolutely incredible. We focused on the task and adapted to our opponents. They believed they could do it and went out and did it.”

Seeing his team go a perfect 19-0 came surprised Black.

“It wasn’t a goal to go 19-0 between the regular season and the Challenge Cup,” Black said. “It wasn’t a goal we set our for ourselves at the beginning of the season. We just wanted to do the best we could.”

Black said he’s pleased more with the development of each of his players individual skills than he is with the perfect season.

“Development of each players skills is my primary goal as a coach,” Black said. “That’s more satisfying for me than going 19-0 this year. The championship was great but it’s more important at this age that each player develops their skills. Looking at the development of each of our players, I feel pretty good about that.”

Shaun Scott / Of The Herald