YOUTH SCENE

SOCCER

AYSO Region 97

Boys under 12

Newport 1, Tustin 0: The Newport Mavericks completed their run through the boys’ under-12 Area Q playoffs with a championship victory over a solid Tustin team.

The area championship, which is the third in the last four seasons for the boys, was sealed with a score from Carson Poivre and shutout goal tending by Ryan Braun.

Braun, who made several one-on-one saves throughout the match, had plenty of solid defense in front of him led by Caleb O’Neil, who had his most solid effort of the season. Alongside O’Neil on the defensive front were Dominik Folkner, Brett Tafoya and Emmanuel Jogwe.

Meanwhile, the attackers applied pressure all game long until Poivre connected in the third frame. Led by strikers Baron Davis and Jehu Jogwe, the Tustin team was on its heels all game long. The midfield was controlled by the aggressiveness of Kevin Tellez, Riley Gaddis, Byron Gutierrez, Jack Binford, David Schaefer and Sawyer Farmer. In the end the boys proudly displayed their gold medals and disbursed to prepare to face one another in the upcoming Daily Pilot Cup, which begins May 27. The group represents players from Mariners Elementary (Binford, Braun, Davis, Folkner, and Tafoya), Kaiser Elementary (Gutierrez, Poivre, and Tellez), Newport Heights Elementary (Jogwe), Carden Hall (Farmer and Gaddis), and Mariners Christian (Schaefer).

Girls under 12

Newport Beach 3, Costa Mesa 0: Newport finished the Area Q Spring Select playoffs as champions with a hard fought victory over a very good team from Costa Mesa. Kenya Avila got Newport on the scoreboard first when she found the net on her shot off an assist from Lea Phillips. McKenna Johnson, the Chargers free kick specialist, scored a short while later on her corner kick that split the defense and sailed past the goalkeeper. Kate McFetters added the third and final goal in the third quarter with assists from Britney Myers and Avila. It was a great team effort for Newport with strong defensive play by Jenna Nulty, Berkley Van Oostendorp, Emily Cook and Leah Castillo. Katelyn Mead and Kathryn DelaTorre played very well at their midfield positions, shutting down the opponents attack and setting up their teammates on the offensive end. Megan Daly kept the pressure on the Costa Mesa defense with her ball handling and passing at the right forward position. Tyler Stupor played one her best games of the year, making great decisions and stopping several dangerous scoring chances for the opponents.

Girls under 10

Lightning and Thunder: The Newport Beach Lightning and Thunder were crowned champions of their pool in the AYSO Area Q Spring Select Tournament. Lightning and Thunder recorded shutouts in all three games while scoring a total of eight goals.

The defense was led by goalkeepers of Reilly Cox, Kate Hefner and Rylie Siegfried. Their outstanding play and sure hands stifled the opponents’ scoring opportunities. In addition, their booming kicks to the other half of the field set up numerous counterattacks. Leading the team in scoring were Claire Olmstead and Bailey Scalzo with two goals each. The Bailey and Claire combo sealed the deal in Game 1 and Game 3 of the tournament. Emily Fay and Emily Halphide also contributed. They slashed through the defense with their dribbling and provided pinpoint passes. Jaci DeFeo turned in another exceptional performance at left forward and left fullback. Her field awareness and aggressive play usually started the offensive attacks. Holding court in the midfield, Peyton Groves didn’t let anything get by her. She pounded the ball with swift kicks.

Boys under 10

Green Machine vs. Chili Peppers: Cooper “Lefty” Peters scored five goals for the Green Machine. Green Machine opened the scoring in the second minute of the game when Cooper latched on a long ball and after a couple of dribbles blasted the ball into the goal. Kevin Palmer once again was rock solid on defense. Tom Phillips had the difficult task of covering the other team’s playmaker and he was able to contain him throughout the game. The visitors got one goal back at the end of first quarter. In the second quarter, the steady play of Sohrob Goodarzy and Ezra Salgado in the midfield created many chances for scoring opportunities. A long punt by Tom Phillips created a fast-break opportunity for Rex Kathcart. Kathcart’s quick dash on the sideline and his perfectly timed cross allowed Cooper to score his second goal. Harrison White and Jacob Whelan worked hard to disrupt the opposition’s flow of game, their hard work paid off when a third goal was scored just prior to halftime. In the second half, the team applied more pressure, both Sohrob and Harrison came close to scoring on two separate occasions. Kathcart was the key on the wings, his two assists in the second half resulted in two more goals by the end of the game. The Chili Peppers applied more pressure in the second half, but the hustle of Kevin, Sohrob, Ezra and Harrison as well as some excellent goalkeeping by Tom Phillips stopped many attacks by the other team.

Girls under 8

The Lucky Charms vs. The Firecrackers: Alex DeLonge proved to be nearly unstoppable as goalie. Lara Farinsky showed amazing footwork while Claire Bacon was a force. Michelle Pokusa’s played well defensively. Grace Fay provided accurate passes. After many fierce shots on goal, Caroline Pipkin drew cheers from the crowd with a goal.