Based on the west coast of the United States, the Western Soccer Alliance (WSA) came into existence in 1985 as a means of providing semi-pro and amateur clubs an opportunity to compete outside of their local areas.
In response, the WSA awarded a franchise to Dan Van Voorhis, a San Francisco Bay Area-based real estate lawyer.
Van Voorhis had gotten his start in real estate when he and his partner provided the legal expertise for the creation of the Blackhawk Ranch housing development.
[1] Van Voorhis named his new team, which competed in the newly renamed Western Soccer League's North Division, the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks.
In the playoffs, the Blackhawks downed the Los Angeles Heat in penalty kicks before losing 1–0 to the Nomads in the final game.
In the playoffs, the Blackhawks defeated the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the semifinals, then won their first and only championship with a victory over the Albany Capitals.
Van Voorhis elected to withdraw from the APSL as his team was bleeding money, and enter them in the lower level United States Interregional Soccer League (USISL).
While this reduced travel cost, it left a lot to be desired as the Hawks continued to crush their competition, defeating the East Los Angeles Cobras 4–1, and the Dallas Americans 4–1.
Despite these two victories, the Hawks did not make the championship game, losing out to the Greensboro Dynamo and Orlando Lions on goal differential.