CARMEL, IN -Carmel United's Crossroads of America College Showcase had quickly become one of the premier college recruiting events on the Girls side of elite youth soccer. Dozens of D1 coaches were on hand to watch games Saturday despite frigid and windy conditions had many parents and observers scurrying to nearby stores for impromptu purchases of extra clothing layers.

Following are some select match reports.

U15 Girls: Lexington FC 2, Carmel United 1

A rematch of last year's Region II Championship match saw Kris Zander's Kentuckians gain a measure of revenge as a wind-aided goal on a corner provided the margin of victory.

Madeline Boone created the first chance for LFC with a good turn and shot that missed narrowly. Carmel's Sophie Spenia reminded that she runs well with the ball, making a few forays into the Lexington end in the opening half. Kaitlan Wiles won a ball in the forward third for Carmel before blasting a shot over. Aubrey Hauenstein was next to challenge for Carmel, running into the area before shooting high.

Lexington's Alexandra Waller showed some good 1v1 defending, while backline partner Mary Catherine Combs  is very fast and covered a lot of ground in defense.

After weathering a Carmel storm, Lexington turned things around and scored a goal. Talented forward Arin Gilliland started the move with a deep pass before going on a long, off-the-ball run. Teryn Wright and then Emma Brown played passes on the break before Gilliland got it back and fired a shot into the back of the net to make it 1-0 Lexington.

Carmel responded with a good pass over the top from Spenia that Haley Keller ran onto, before fighting off a challenge and then firing home under duress for a terrific goal that made it 1-1.

In the 2^nd half, Gilliland ran onto a long serve by Brown, but Carmel's Erin Sullivan made a good play on defense to avert the danger. Madeline Boone was also creating chances for LFC with good running and dribbling. In fact it was Boone who got the deciding touch on something of an odd goal. Gilliland's cross was actually held up momentarily by a gust of win and Boone got to it before the goalkeeper to make it 2-1.

The teams continued to battle but no more goals were coming. Lexington's Kajsa Brindley was effective in the back, while Carmel's Alexandria Auscherman showed a good deal of work ethic and soccer intelligence in her backline play.

Lexington coach Kris Zander said the win was important looking back and looking forward, and agreed his team is adding some bite to their notable level of finesse with the ball.

"I think it was a tough loss last year so there was a little bit of wanting to come back from that. They are both  very good teams and it was important for us to show we could beat them," Zander said. "We are trying to get them to be a little more physical. We're not the biggest team and we don't want to be dirty by any means, but they will have to deal with the physical side a bit more as they get older."

 
U18 Girls: Eclipse Select 3, Internationals 0

Both teams took a while to warm up in the freezing cold, but the Chicago-area side ended up forging a deserved 3-0 win.

Hannah Peterson started Eclipse off with a good run through the middle before playing a ball to Candace Ruff, who in turn fed Julie Ewing for a shot that went off target. Ruff then went wide with an effort of her own before. Internationals' standout Paige Maxwell excecuted a good turn and cross on the other end. Eclipse's Lauren Levitt made a timely clearance.

Eclipse forward Carly Samp put in some good work in the opposing penalty area before her low shot was saved. Maxwell responded with a good run down the left, but Meghan Lewis had her shot saved. Julie Ewing then made a weaving run through the Internationals' end before rolling a ball through the 6-yard box, but nobody could reach it for the finish.

Ewing got a goal after all when Rachelle Holt crossed from the right. Ewing controlled calmly, sidestepped a defender and shot home to make it 1-0 Eclipse.

Ewing's 2^nd goal saw her control the ball well and burst between 2 defenders before lashing a low shot home.

 

U17 Girls: Edmond SC Black 1, Stones River Lady Strikers 0

This was one of the better-played matches of the Showcase. Dylan Jordan started the Tennessee side off well with a good turn and shot that went just wide. Grace Stumb showed herself a good 1v1 defender as well for Stones River.

For Edmond, Catherine Parrish, Amy Grown and Callie Cooper were working very well together in the attack. It was Cooper who sent a swerving ball in from long range, and the seeing-eye shot, perhaps taking the slightest of deflections from a defender, founds its way to the back of the net for what would be the game's only goal.

Stones River's Anna Grigg is a tenacious right wing player with a good understanding of tactics, a quick burst of speed and an equally good first touch. Edmond's Chandler Murphy is a gritty ballwinner in midfield, while Madison Hills nearly scored a 2^nd goal for her team with a good chip that Stones River goalkeeper Megan Polk had to push over the bar. ESC coach Jame Soesbee still came away with the win.