MVSC 93' Boys and Girls Wrap Up Group Play at US Youth Soccer Regional II Tournament

                                                                                 

28 June 2010

Monday proved to be a bittersweet day for Mockingbird Valley Soccer Club as both the 93’ (U-17) Boys and Girls teams took the field in the final day of group play in need of wins in order to advance to the semi-finals of the Regional Tournament.  The 93’ MVSC Girls played a strong Scott Gallagher team and needed not only a win, but a shutout as well in order to maximize their goal differential and advance into the semi-final round of the US Youth Soccer Region II Tournament. For the 93’ MVSC Boys, the situation created in group play through the first two days of group play was simple: win and advance into the semi-final round of play in the U-17 age group.

The 93’ Girls took the field first on Monday against Scott Gallagher (St. Louis) and were well aware of the task ahead of them. Approximately ten minutes into the first half, MVSC capitalized on a corner kick with a scrappy goal converted after the ball had bounced around the opponent’s penalty box for what seemed like an eternity. After the 1-0 lead, the 93’ Girls were not to be denied their opportunity to make history for Mockingbird Valley Soccer Club. The team went on to beat the St. Louis opponent 4-0, scoring 3 set-piece goals and maxing out with possible points available to take away from the game, helping them advance to Tuesday’s semi-final game against Ohio Premier at 10 a.m.
The day seemed to be on the right track as the MVSC Girls took care of business and the 93’ MVSC Boys took the field against its opponent from Kansas with the rights to advance to the semi-final round on the line. The game took a frenetic pace from the first whistle, proving that the MVSC Boys were going to be a difficult match-up for its Kansas foe as the Louisville boys had the better of the scoring opportunities in the first fifteen minutes of the first half. The day began to take its bittersweet tone for MVSC players and supporters when the 93’s Boys went down 1-0 on an unforeseen goal came about twenty-plus minutes into the first half of play. MVSC went on to put its opponent under tremendous pressure for the rest of the half, and well into the second half, but was continuously unsuccessful in all of the chances they were able to create. With time running out on the season for the 93’ MVSC boys, the coaching staff had to take chances and push players forward, exposing the defensive line with ten minutes of play left in the match. This tactical change helped create more scoring opportunities, but in the end, resulted in an unstoppable opportunity converted by the Kansas opponents. MVSC continued to fight until the final whistle, but sadly had its tremendous season come to an end with a 2-0 loss, resulting in elimination from the 2010 US Youth Soccer Region II Tournament. 
2010 has proven to be MVSC’s most successful showing in any US Youth Soccer National Championship Series Tournaments, as both teams were in contention until the final day of competition. Congratulations go out to both teams for their hard work and accomplishments thus far in their seasons. The 93’ MVSC Girls will take the field tomorrow at 10 a.m. against Ohio Premier in hopes of continuing their season and reaching the finals of the 2010 Region II Tournament. 

  

  

  

 

 

27 June 2010

The 93’ (U-17) MVSC Boys team opened play first on Saturday, June 26 2010 and jumped out to a great start with a 2-0 lead against the Michigan Wolves.  The match presented a furious pace in play, and both teams were able to create several chances on goal as the game approached the end.  The Michigan Wolves clawed their way back into the match by capitalizing on a missed clearance coming from a corner kick, forcing MVSC to defend for the final ten minutes of the match.  An injury to one of MVSC’s central defenders forced the coaches to make some tactical changes in an effort to finish the game with a win.  The boys were extremely disappointed when Michigan was awarded a questionable penalty by the referee with less than two minutes to play.  The match ended in a 2-2 tie.

The 93’ (U-17) MVSC Girls team followed with its opening match on the same day, also taking the field against a Michigan opponent; the Michigan Jaguars.  This game was also very intense and saw plenty of goal scoring opportunities as the match progressed.  The MVSC defense was put to the test throughout the match, particularly goalkeeper Maddie Peabody, who had an answer every time the Michigan Jaguars threatened with their attack.  Because of the enormous pressure the defense was under, the MVSC attack was able to create several goal scoring opportunities of their own, narrowly missing some, while the others were turned away by the Michigan goalkeeper.  The match ended in a 0-0 tie, giving both teams a point as they entered the second round of group play on Sunday.

Sunday brought about another set of challenges for both teams as the Boys faced off against the Madison 56ers and the Girls took the field against Omaha Football Club.  Both teams found more success in their second day of play at the Regional Tournament as the boys were able to come away with a 2-1 win and the girls were able to grind out a 3-0 victory. 

After today’s results, both teams enter the final day of group play with 4 points and in need of another result headed into Monday.  With a win, each team can advance out of group play and into the semi-finals of the Regional Tournament.  The 93’ MVSC Boys will take the field against WSO United Thunder (Kansas) and the 93’ MVSC Girls will take on Scott Gallager (St. Louis).