LAND O'LAKES - Stacy Bishop, Tara Eugenides and Shannon Aitken had been there before. As Land O'Lakes High teammates, they were crowned Class 2A state champions in March.
But their Hillsborough County United teammates, former Zephyrhills standouts Nikki Castro and Renee Yonkoff, never experienced winning a state championship.
Now they know.
Castro, a 2002 graduate who played for Eckerd as a freshman, and 2003 graduate Yonkoff teamed with Bishop, Eugenides and Aitken among others in United's Florida Youth Soccer Association State Cup victory. The 18-and-under team defeated Team Boca 2-1 on Sunday.
The Pasco County quintet soon could share another crown with United opening Southern Regional play Friday at Greensboro, N.C. in pursuit of a national title.
For Castro, who is transferring to Florida Institute of Technology to team with Yonkoff and Eugenides, winning a state title gave some bragging rights in her family.
"I'm like, "Ha, ha. I've got one,' " Castro said of teasing her brother Geoff, who won three state titles with the Temple Terrace Spirit.
HCU's victory halted Team Boca's string of seven consecutive state championships.
"It's like the best showing because you know you played a team that's been on top for so long," said Castro, a former Sunshine Athletic Conference defender who plays midfield for HCU. "It's the best feeling in the world."
Added Adrian Bush, HCU's director of coaching and former boys coach at Gaither High, "We dethroned a dynasty."
Winning a state title at the club level means more than a high school championship to Castro.
"In high school, it would have been nice to have one," she said. "But club, you know you're playing against the best."
While Eugenides, a sweeper, and goalkeeper Aitken, who had seven shutouts, were instrumental in United limiting the opposition to one goal in eight games, coach Bush was impressed with Yonkoff's consistency as a marking back at midfield.
"Renee's really come on very strong," Bush said of the versatile Yonkoff, who played forward, midfield and on defense in four seasons at Zephyrhills. "She really committed herself and she earned a starting spot. She gave us a very, very solid performance in the final four."
Castro thinks United is a contender for a Southern Region title, which would qualify the team for the United States Youth Soccer Association Nationals.
"We want everything," Castro said. "We want the title best."
