Finals teams tell their stories
PlayOn! asked each team who qualified to play in the 2006 State Championship Finals to describe their journey for our readers. We received a great response and couldn't publish all of them in the April PlayOn!, so we decided to share their stories on our web site.
BU-11 GRJSA Thunderbirds - Schmeck
by Melissa Bray, Team Manager
Front row: (On knees) Left to right - Christian Navaretta, Kyle Bratton, Jaime Huerta, Ryan Wong, Paul Voytovich, Nate Brown, Joel Hernandez-Lara, Isidro Huerta, JJ Schmeck, Jacob Ruiz-Velasco
Second row: Marco Bravo, Jalen Markey, Christian Soto, Ringo Banuelos, Shawn Vera
Third row: Omar Lara (Assistant Coach), Jason Schmeck (Head Coach)
This team is coached by Jason Schmeck and the assistant is Omar Lara. This is the first year the boys have been a team. They placed second in their league with a record of 8-4. Every game throughout the tournament was a great one. All the boys knew where they could go with every win. When that final whistle blew, and the boys had just won that Championship game, there was extreme joy and happiness. Way to go, boys and coaches!
Not only as team manager, but as mother of one of the players, I say “Great Job, Boys!” and “THANKS!! Coaches”.
BU-12 SnVYSA Cascade Select ReAL
by Curt Carlson, Team Manager
On Saturday, March 11th Cascade Select ReAL played against Norpoint Fire in the BU-12 Championship game. To get to the Championship game ReAL had to play six games - the team won five games and tied one while outscoring its opponents 14 – 1.
In the Championship Game ReAL was down 1 - 0 at the half time break. In the second half the Norpoint Fire scored another goal at approximately the 40th minute putting ReAL down 2 - 0. At U-12 age group the teams play 30 minute halves. In the 42nd minute of the game ReAL scored its first goal, and in the 44th minute they tied the game with their second goal. The game ended in regulation time tied. The rules state two ten minute overtime periods are to be played to determine a winner. After the first ten minute overtime period the score remained tied 2 - 2. In the second minute of the second overtime period ReAL took the lead for the first time in the game with their third goal, and it held off Norpoint Fire to win the game 3 - 2.
As are all Cascade Select teams, this team is organized and run by volunteers. Head coach Yamac Bilginer has volunteered hundreds of hours over the past year teaching and coaching the players to this Championship win.
The last Cascade team to make it to the Championship game was Cascade Select Divas - GU17 in 1999 and they did win. What makes this Championship win even more remarkable is how young this ReAL team is. Seven of the 15 players are playing up one year. That is, they would normally play in the U-11 bracket, but they tried out for and made the U-12 team a year ago. Many of the Norpoint players were significantly bigger than the ReAL players.
In addition to the Championship trophy the team was also awarded the 2006 Commissioners Cup Leanne Ehnat Fair Play Award for their sportsmanship displayed in the game.
BU-14 FWSA Storm '91 White
by Scott Nelson, Team Trainer
By meeting the CW Revolution in the final, the Storm's Commissioner's Cup Journey came full circle. The Storm 91 White, coached by Steve Harris and trained by Scott Nelson, faced the defending state champion in the opening game of group play on a wet and windy day in Vancouver . Trailing 1-0 and held to just one scoring chance over the first 58 minutes of play, the Storm suddenly struck three goals within a six minute span and headed back to Federal Way with a stunning 3-1 victory.
The other two games of the first round were rematches with rivals from the Storm's recently completed fall season. These games followed form as the U-14 Inter-District league champion beat FC Alliance White (2-0) and Blackhills FC (4-1) to win the group and ensure home field advantage through the semifinals.
A 4-0 victory over the Mukilteo Matrix set up a quarterfinal match against another southwest Washington team, OR Northstar, and this game would prove to be classic. An early penalty kick gave the Storm a 1-0 lead, and the Federal Way team dominated large spells of the first half, hitting the post three times and creating numerous other chances. Those squandered chances came back to haunt the Storm as Northstar came out strong after the interval and battled their way to a 2-1 lead. The rest of the match saw an all out assault on Northstar's goal and the Storm hit a last gasp equalizer with literally the last kick of regulation time to stave off elimination. Undeterred, Northstar scored in the first minute of overtime, but Federal Way again came back to level the score and force penalty kicks. Four of the five Storm shooters kept their nerve to send their team to the semifinal.
For the semifinal, Federal Way faced last year's finalist EV United. Another well played game, with the teams trading goals in the first half and neutralizing each other in the second half and overtime, led to yet another cliffhanger ending against a Vancouver area team for the Storm. Federal Way again prevailed in a penalty shootout to bring the team back to where they started back in January, playing the CW Revolution.
On to the final and a rematch with CW Revolution, where the Storm's good form (and 18 game unbeaten streak) came to an end. CW Revolution were the better team on that day and ran out worthy 2-0 winners. Despite falling at the last hurdle, coach Steve Harris was upbeat. “This was the first poor game we've played since the beginning of September”, he said, “I give credit to the Revolution for that, as they played their game very well and kept us from playing ours. We'd love to have finished the year off with the Cup, especially after our rough start to the year, but the boys have improved and matured so much since LPT's that I can't be disappointed with them. We've really come together as a team since last June. Next year we'll be entering the Challenge Cup, and if we keep improving the way we have been, our goal will be to reach that final, too.”
BU-15 CYSF Prairie Ice
by Sherry Winkleblack, parent
Soccer in Vancouver , Washington , home to the Prairie Ice, is played on grass, and sometimes mud, fields in the heat early in the fall and in the cold rain in the winter and spring. Together only since March, 2005, the Ice has compiled an impressive record.
The Ice went to two preseason summer tournaments:
- Narrows Cup in Tacoma . Took third place in the tournament. Playing short- handed, our record was 1-0-2.
- Shelton tournament. Won tournament. Our record was 4-0.
The Ice played a nine game regular season schedule for Prairie Soccer Club, District 5. Our record was 8-0-1, winning our district title. We had 28 GF (goals for) and 5 GA (goals against). In the Commissioners' Cup pool play, the Ice opened with a home victory over the Tusk Titans 4-0. Our second game was on turf against Monroe Extreme, which we tied at 1-1. Our third game was home against the MVFC 90 Guardians Red Bartels, which we won 2-0. We finished tied for first in pool play with 23 points and moved on to the elimination round. In the elimination round, the Ice played at home in terrible weather and field conditions (mud puddles) against the FC Alliance White 90. The Prairie Ice came out on top with a score of 3-2.
In the quarter final match, we played the MRFC 90 Fire. It was a very even match, tied 0-0 at halftime. It gave the coaches the feeling that one goal could win the match. After halftime, the Fire scored in the first minutes of the second half. The Ice regrouped, did not let down, remained focused and scored about five minutes later, on a low driving cross by Chris Kimberling that was finished by Kevin Pepin. We were all tied 1-1. With about 12 minutes left in the match, Chris Kimberling again with a nice cross to Jordan Donahue that he finished with a header in the back of the net! The Prairie Ice went on to win 2-1.
The semi-final match against the SC Eclipse 90 was very exciting, coming down to the final kick in a tiebreaker. At the half, it was 0-0. Eclipse scored at about minute 45 of the match. The Ice matched the scored at the 75 minute on a PK by Charlie Kriss. The PK originally hit the Eclipse keeper and Charlie followed the shot, got the rebound and put it in. So it was tied 1-1 at the end of regulation. Within the first two minutes of the 30 minute overtime period, Eclipse scored on a corner kick. At about the 17 minute mark of overtime, the Eclipse scored again on a crossed ball that was headed into the back of the Prairie Ice net. At the 20 minute mark, Charlie Kriss, on a breakaway, beat a lone defender and the keeper and scored for the Ice. At the 24 minute mark, the Ice scored on a corner by Colby Newton that was finished with a volley by Zach Hainline. At the end of OT, the match was even at 3-3. It was a gutting performance by the short-handed Prairie Ice team. They just never gave up during regulation or the overtime. Key players during regulation and overtime were center-defender Charlie Kriss, stopper Erik Courtney and keeper Joel Michaud.
So we moved on to a tie breaker. The Prairie rotation for the kicks was Charlie Kriss, Brian Macom, Colby Newton, Scott Winkleblack and Erik Courtney. First up was Charlie Kriss. Charlie just missed the upper right corner. The Eclipse Player was next and the shot was saved by the Prairie Ice Keeper Tyler Broadwater. 0-0 after the first round. Next up for the Ice was Brian Macom. Brian put in a great shot in the lower left corner. The second Eclipse player took a shot and again was denied by Prairie Ice Keeper Tyler Broadwater. Ice was up 1-0 after round two. Next up for the Ice was Colby Newton. Colby put in a shot in the lower left corner. The third Eclipse player took a shot and put it past Prairie Ice Keeper in the lower right corner. Ice was up 2-1 after round three. Next up for the Ice was Scott Winkleblack. Scott's shot to the lower left corner was denied by the Eclipse Keeper. The fourth Eclipse player also shot one past the Prairie Ice Keeper in the lower right corner. So the score was 2-2 after round four. Last up for the Ice was Erik Courtney. Erik ripped a shot just to the left of the keeper that was too hot to handle and made it passed the Eclipse keeper. Next up was the Eclipse player and once again he was denied by Prairie Ice Keeper, Tyler Broadwater. The Ice won 3-2 on PKs.
Final score - Prairie Ice - 4, SC Eclipse 90 - 3
This makes the preseason summer tournament, regular season and Commissioners' Cup total record for the Prairie Ice at 18 wins, 0 loses and 4 ties.
BU-17 ECYSA CW Jolts
by Phil Lukins, Coach
Front L-R: Luis Tejada(assistant coach), Chris Goecks, Adam Wilde, Pedro Sosa, Chris Enns, Steven Bunker, A.J. Montehermoso, Billy Keyser, Joshua Juarez
Back L-R: Curt Strickland(assistant coach), Cody Uskoski, Michael Kilbride, Dylan Price, Ross Berger, Jordan Webberley, Chase Ediger, David Wiens, Jordan Strickland, Phil Lukins(head coach)
Not Pictured: Michael Lukins and Jake Hearron
The Jolts finished in a tie for second in the District 5 Boys HS division with 6 wins, 4 losses and 1 tie. We then finished as the second seed in our bracket of preliminary games. The Crusaders and FC Alliance Gold '88 provided tough competition in the quarter-final and semi-final games, where we won each game by only one goal. It all came together for us in the finals against a very talented Crossfire Premier team!
BU-18 NCYSA Marysville Force 87
by Cory Elwell, Coach
The team started out participating in LPT's, performing well enough to qualify for WSYDL. This was followed by a successful summer tournament schedule where the team found itself playing for the tournament championship in four consecutive events. The team got off to a strong 5-2 start in League Play, and continued to improve going into the state tournament. We compiled a 4-0-1 record on our way to the state final.
GU-11 LWYSA Crossfire Premier – A. Lombard
by Leanne Thomas, parent
Hailing from Seattle 's Eastside neighborhoods – Redmond , Sammamish, Bellevue , Kirkland and Woodinville – the 15 players from Crossfire's Premier GU11 A. Lombard team love competitive soccer. Their passion is fueled by excellent coaching from Amy Lombard with assistance by Porter Lombard and Simon Robinson. Amy has coached for 10 years, and has assisted in two state titles. She has a USSF C License, and was named this year's B-team Coach of the Year.
The Crossfire girls have responded with hard work throughout the year in practices, regular season games and tournaments. They approach every effort the same way, always giving their very best. Equally important, they have had fun along the way and learned to appreciate and respect their teammates.
This team had a record of 2-7-5 in the regular season in LWYSA District III's GU11 Gold Titanium bracket, with many games decided on a 1-point margin. They were semi-finalists in the 2005 Starfire Spring TUNEUP, the 2005 Skagit River Cup and the 2005 Snohomish United Invitational tournaments. They were champions in the 2005 Snohomish Big Foot tournament.
GU-11 TCYSA South Sound Select Futbol Club Velocity
by Dan Martinez (coach) and Cathy McDonough (manager)
The girls on Velocity, of South Sound Select FC, should be very proud of their journey to the WSYSA Fred Meyer Commissioners' Cup Finals. It has been an exciting and challenging journey that was not even a consideration when the season started. With a handful of returning players and enough to field a team at tryouts, Velocity entered the season unknown and untested. The summer tournaments brought mixed results as Velocity learned to play together and develop the skills necessary to compete with the state's stronger teams. By the time the League season started, Velocity had added their final players and hit their stride. With a strong second place finish in District III Gold Platinum league and a record of 10-2-2, Velocity had stormed on to the GU11 state radar as a respectable team. With this momentum behind them they were excited to participate in the Fred Meyer Commissioners Cup. To win the preliminary round, Velocity defeated Marauders 94 Blue, Sparta 94, and tied Aanvallen in January. In the first elimination game, Velocity defeated a familiar opponent, Crossfire 94-Lim 3-1. The quarterfinal game started promising as Velocity gained an early 2-0 advantage only to have it erased in the second half by a scrappy FC Nemesis team. Velocity managed to score once more and hold Nemesis off to win the game 3-2, and advance to semifinals.
At the Semifinals, Velocity battled Emerald City FC 94 White to a 0-0 tie in regulation time, while surviving a missed PK late in the game. Two overtimes were still not enough to produce a goal and the game went to Kicks from the Penalty Mark. After missing its first two kicks, Velocity eventually won the thrilling shoot-out when the last Emerald City kick was blocked by Goalkeeper Olivia Brock.
The V-gals would like to thank the entire soccer community, their coach, Dan Martinez, and their parents for encouraging them to become the best athletes they can be. Under the guidance of their coach, these girls have learned so much about soccer, teamwork, and character. They look forward to many great years ahead!
GU-12 CBYSA FC Extreme '93
by Tim Logan, Assistant Coach
2,000, that's the amount in miles that several parents and coaches will have logged onto their vehicles once they get home from the Fred Meyer Commissioner's Cup Finals in Bremerton on March 11. All extra miles accumulated since January, driving to various venues throughout the State for tournament games. It all goes with the territory when these players and coaches are members of the FC Extreme ‘93, a girls U-12 team from Othello. Not that any of them are complaining about it (Well, maybe a couple of them did at one time or another along the way.), because it has been a great journey.
The Extreme played it's only home game when they opened the tournament against the Blackhills FC team from Tumwater during round robin play. They won that game but lost one of the goalies for four weeks when she broke her toe on a save. Two weeks later, the team (with one player now on crutches) traveled to Gig Harbor for their next match. A motor vehicle accident involving two parents on I-5 on the way to the game almost stood in the way of all parents being able to make it to the game before kickoff. While one car had to be towed away, the other family was able to drive away with a hood shaped like a taco. They eventually had to stay overnight in order to get their car into safe condition for the trip back home. Fortunately, it was a relatively minor accident with no one getting injured. One of the families ended up with a new car out of the deal. The Extreme and the Gig Harbor team, the Harbor FC, were tied after regulation without either team scoring. During the second overtime period, Harbor FC earned the win with a direct free kick that found the goal. The Extreme now face that team again in the finals.
That loss forced the Extreme to jump down into the elimination bracket. Their first test in bracket play came against the Cascade Select Emeralds of Carnation. The Extreme were unable to make it to this game due to Snoqualmie Pass being closed for avalanche control the morning of the date it was scheduled. The game was rescheduled to the following weekend in North Bend . Both teams saw strong winds and cold rain during a match that ended 2-0 in favor of the Extreme. The semifinal game was played in Olympia at South Sound Stadium against the U-12 Eagles, which was won by the Extreme 1-0. The lone goal was scored on a direct free kick, this time in their favor.
Anticipation and excitement increased with the Extreme making it to the quarterfinals in Tukwila. There, they faced the FC Kitsap-Gray from Bremerton . This hard fought game ended 2-0, and the Extreme had their third win in a row and their third shutout in a row.
The Extreme played in the District 6 Inter-Association League last fall and were undefeated in league play which earned them the Championship in the Girls U-12 division. They were in the finals of the gold division of the Wenatchee Apple Cup in October and champions of the Yakima Mid-Summer classic last summer. They are coached by head coach, Kevin McDonald, and assistant coaches Chris Byam, Tim Logan, and Donnie Edson, all fathers of girls on the team.
GU-15 LWYSA Crossfire Select '90 Jackson
by Dick Musgrove, Team Manager
FRONT ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Candace Haghighi, Bri Jackson
MIDDLE ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Molly Navalinski, Chelsea Hewitt, Kiera Musgrove, Kasey Burger
BACK ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Shelby Herber, Anna Roberds, Bryn Nelson, Lindsay Ris, Theresa Hoey, Montia Wythes, Audrey Smith, Meg Leishman
The tension and disappointment following the first Commissioners' Cup game hung in the air. How could we have lost this one? Hadn't play been stopped before that goal went in? Weren't we a team climbing back into contention after a disappointing first half of the fall season in District 3 Gold Titanium? Oh well, that's soccer and "these things happen..." But our coach has been telling us to "BELIEVE" since the team was first formed in 2003 as the "LWYSA Quake". We had two very tough teams yet to play in bracket play including a "seeded", state league team and we needed to focus on playing good soccer and "believing". And so we did, advancing out of bracket and eventually beating a very tough, talented Kent Spirit team in the semifinal game which landed us in the Finals. We believe in ourselves and we believe in each other. And in the "beautiful game" that is soccer.
GU-16 EYSA EFC '89 White
By Darcell Johnston and Jean Herman, managers
The EFC '89 White team has one of the smallest rosters in our club, 13 full time players, yet they play as if they are a team of 20, with heart and soul. Our journey begins at LPTs, June 2005. The first game at 8:00 am started out okay, but soon turned ugly. Our keeper, Pip, was taken out early in the second half - a broken collar bone – she was out for the rest of the weekend! Pip is the only full time keeper so her injury left the team very unsettled. Susan, who had played keeper in the past, stepped up to play in the goal for the rest of the weekend. Despite the team's best efforts, they were unable to win enough games to place in either Division III or WSYDL.
The team played District 3 Gold Titanium for the season. Coaches Mike Williams and Paul Spears led this team to an undefeated league season with a record of 12-0-1, and 38 goals for with only six against. What is special about this team is that there are no stars; they all are major contributors on the field.
Heading into the Commissioners' Cup the team was full of confidence. However this was tempered by both coaches, with reminders that the opposition would consistently be tougher. With this in mind, the coaches never let up, and the team did not disappoint. They survived an initial scare of double overtime and kicks from the mark in the first elimination round. Week by week, they went out on the field and knocked out the 2 nd , 3 rd and 4 th seeded teams.
An example of the dedication of the players on this team was that many changed their vacation plans over Presidents Day weekend. These changes of plans incurred expenses for their families, but the players did it anyway so they could field a full roster for the semi-final game. This was an “edge of the seat” game, with Eastside winning 2-0.
The championship game was an hour ferry ride away for the team. This gave them plenty of time to strategize and focus. The game was very intense and hard fought. Despite Eastside's best efforts, they lost 0-2.
This experience has far surpassed all expectations of the parents and team. With the strong leadership of our coaches, Mike and Paul, this team has had a phenomenal season. Thanks to you both, from the players and parents – what a ride!
GU-17 LWYSA Crossfire Premier '88
by Aaron Laing, Head Coach
Our season started out on a very positive note: we finished second in the Snohomish United soccer club's annual May tournament and followed up by qualifying for the WSYDL league at LPTs. We won in a shootout against an excellent and equally deserving team from Bainbridge Island . Our team has been in existence for seven seasons, and this was our first year playing at the state level. Needless to say, the girls were very excited and rose to the new challenge. We finished third in the fall standings behind eventual Commissioners' Cup champions Federal Way Reign United '88, which is the only team to post a winning record against us in the fall. Great competition! We lead our division in goals scored, averaging three per game.
We went into the Commissioners' Cup having just finished second a week earlier in the first annual New Mexico Nike Rush tournament in Albuquerque . We set our sights on the cup, but we had two additional goals: to score our 90th goal for the season--far surpassing the team's previous record of 69--and to enjoy the match and atmosphere, regardless of the result. Despite our 2-3 loss in the final, we accomplished two of the three objectives, scoring our 90th and 91st goals and having a great time. We had a blast!
We enjoyed the ceremony and attention to detail and thought the officiating was exceptional. We were honored to be there and were especially grateful for the outpouring of support we received from all corners of the state. Notable among the supporters was Bill Wagener, retired coach of the Orchard Sharks girls '88 team. His thoughtful remarks in a letter took some of the pressure off. And it was neat to see other coaches and opponents, past and present, from around the state take the time to write us and call us to wish us good luck. That is a tribute to the values instilled by WSYSA and its member organizations.
Journey to U S Youth Washington Championships
Journey to Challenge Cup Finals