Barry FaulknerSixth-grade graduation is still a few...

Barry Faulkner

Sixth-grade graduation is still a few days away, but the veteran

nucleus of the Carden Hall fifth- and sixth-grade girls soccer team

picked up a coveted parting gift Sunday at the Costa Mesa Farm

Complex.

Having flirted with the championship in its three previous trips

to the Daily Pilot Cup, Carden Hall defeated Our Lady Queen of

Angels, 4-1, in the title game.

The victory, which followed a 9-1 morning semifinal triumph over

St. Joachim, put Carden Hall, which outscored its five opponents,

30-2, on top of the 23-team field.

“This group has been knocking on the door,” said Carden Hall

assistant coach Mike Bernay, whose daughter, Julia, a sophomore at

Newport Harbor High, is the head coach. “We were second the first two

years [as third- and fourth-graders] and we lost in the semifinals

last year to Kaiser, which won it.”

Carden Hall appeared little interested in a consolation prize this

year, though Queen of Angels withstood a consistent first-half

offensive barrage, then pulled even four minutes into the second

30-minute half.

But Carden Hall broke the tie four minutes later, and, with a

three-goal flurry in a 14-minute span, paved its way to the awards

presentation, at which each player received a championship medal.

“We have a lot of good players, about 10 who are very strong and

have played a lot of soccer,” Mike Bernay said. “But the girls who

have not played a lot all did what we asked them to do. I think they

made the difference.”

Kelly Matthews opened the scoring for Carden Hall, flicking in a

Maggie Bernay corner kick in the fifth minute.

Carden Hall fired nine more shots before halftime to finish with a

12-1 edge in that department by intermission. But Queen of Angels

kept the deficit at one.

Kate Baldoni scored on an assist from Marta Tena to tie the game

and it remained deadlocked for five minutes, before Carden Hall’s

Loren Draganza converted a pass from the wing for a 2-1 lead.

Maggie Bernay boomed a direct free kick high into the net from

about 30 yards out in the 42nd minute and Draganza finalized the

scoring four minutes later.

“Maggie and Christina O’Tousa took care of the middle for us,”

said Mike Bernay, who also praised the play of Draganza, whose

quickness helped her operate against taller defenders.

Defensively, the Carden Hall coaches singled out Sidney Sweeney,

Gillian Hogan and Shelby Williams, who helped goalie Claire Clayton

keep Queen of Angels at bay.

Caroline Hardenberg, Kimberly Condino, Julie Hassen, Julie

Kapelke, Kristi Jacobs, Cait Williamson, Jennifer Calmbaugh and

Lauren Wilber also contributed to Carden Hall’s championship run.

Queen of Angels Coach John Carvelli credited Carden Hall for the

victory, but was also quick to salute his team’s effort. The Angels

outscored their first four opponents, 16-3, to get to the final,

including a 2-1 semifinal win Sunday over Kaiser No. 1, the defending champion.

Valen Taylor and Jackie Smith had goals, the former on an assist

by MacKenzie Jones, while Stephanie Nealey stood out in goal in Queen

of Angels’ semifinal win. Marianne Jones, Megan Otterbein and Erica

Penunuri worked hard on defense in the title game, in which Victoria

Kent, who shared goalie duties with Nealey and Taylor, also stood

out.

Additional contributors for Queen of Angels were Gabriela Tena,

Katie Gronendyke, Taylor Best, Camille Krahe, Haley Willard, Valerie

Avila, Lauren Rule, Jacqueline Urbanus, Kasey DeYoung, Bridget Fox

and Annalise Moore. Carvelli also wished to thank assistant coaches

Pepe Tena and Scott Jones.

Draganza, Matthews and O’Tousa scored two goals each in Carden

Hall’s semifinal win, while Maggie Bernay, Hardenberg and Hogan had

one apiece.