U16 Girls Surf White fall to NOKC in shocker

U16 Girls Surf White fall to NOKC in shocker
December 1, 2009

SAN DIEGO, California - The talk of the Surf College Cup’s first day surrounded a result that surprised more than a few people.

When the U16 San Diego Surf White squad fell 1-0 to Oklahoma club NOKC OFC 94 girls on Friday, the reaction around the Polo club spoke to both the respect soccer heads have for the Surf team but also the lack of familiarity the Southern California faithful have for NOKC.

But let’s address one issue at a time:

The defending Surf Cup champion Surf have earned the benefit of the doubt through their many achievements, including two straight National Cup Finals, a National League championship and so on and so forth. Accomplished players like Laura Liedle, Kate Perry and Maya Theuer make the team a scary proposition for opponents.

But not NOKC. Heidi Greeson scored early in the second half and the Oklahoma group buckled down to escape a late onslaught of shots by the Surf. Goalkeeper Elyse Hight made a great late save diving to her left and the team’s entire backline held together despite playing the entire match.

“They had us under a lot of pressure but the back four really played well,” said NOKC coach Stephen Phillips. “This is a brand new club so we’re still experimenting a little bit with the girls.”

Starting this year, NOKC United and Edmond Soccer Club merged to create the current team. The group is made up of Oklahoma state champs and they showed why Friday. Madison Smith is a good central midfielder and Madison Mercardo is a deft dribbler.

Philips said he has a few players that travel from Tulsa (hour and a half) just to train with the team, underlining their dedication.

So why NOKC’s victory over the Surf may have been a shocker to many, it was old news to those in the Oklahoma loop.

PLAYERS AND OBSERVATIONS


•    The U17 San Juan Lightning boys have one of the toughest backlines in the tournament - not to be confused with the best, as the team lost both of its matches on Day one. Nsima Inyang, in particular, is a load to handle and looks like he’d be just as natural on the American football field.

•    The U16 San Juan Spirits 94 Blue girls have the tallest goalkeeper in the girls draw, Katelyn Rowland. While we couldn’t confirm her actual height, the ol’ eyeball test tells us she’s around 6-foot-2 (or 6-3). Think it was a coincidence that San Juan didn’t allow a goal in two matches?

Left-footed striker Sarah Jansen is another gem from their team. Great work rate and service.

•    Maybe the most exciting player on Day One? Gustavo Diaz, of U17 FC San Diego Gold Quinn. Diaz scored in his team’s 1-0 win over San Juan and is a very natural player. He’s a left-footed midfielder with a great feel around the ball. He made great play after great play Friday during an exciting game overall.

“We really started connecting in the second half,” said teammate Sergio Lopez. “We’ve had a good year so far but we didn’t do so well at Dallas Cup. It would be great to win this tournament.”

•    In the late hours as the temperatures dropped, a U16 Players SC boy (who shall go unnamed) wore gloves for most of the match, the only non goalkeeper to resort to this accessory.

•    It was a successful day for Santa Clara Sporting. Both their girls U16 and boys U17 teams won two matches apiece in impressive fashion to open up big point leads in their respective brackets.

LOOKING AHEAD

Saturday’s important matches will set up the Sunday morning semifinals. With that said, here are some marquee meetings that will decide a lot today.

U17 Girls
So Cal Blues Dodge vs. Real So Cal White: So Cal has looked indestructible in their two wins, and they lead second place Real So Cal White by six points in Bracket A. That could all change with this one match.

U16 Girls

Slammers FC vs. Sereno 94 White: Separated by two points atop Bracket B, a spot in the semifinals could very well be on the line when these two teams clash late in the afternoon.

U17 Boys
FC San Diego vs. Real So Cal White: This will break a tie at the top of Bracket A as both teams have an identical 11 points.

U16 Boys

Players SC vs. West Coast FC: The winner will claim Bracket C and move on to the semifinals.

SURF COLLEGE CUP STANDINGS

*Six points for win; Two for tie; zero for loss; one point per goal up to three; one point per shutout; minus one point for red card ejection; 0-0 tie is three points for each team.

U17 Girls Super Division
Bracket A

So Cal Blues Dodge 2-0-0 17 pts
Real So Cal White 1-0-1 11 pts
MVLA Avalanche 0-1-1 3 pts
Hurricane FC 93 Shubert 0-2-0 1 pt

Bracket B

Slammers FC G92 1-0-0 8 pts
Mustang SC Earthquakes 0-0-1 3 pts
San Diego Surf White 0-0-1 3 pts
SC Del Sol 93 Maxwell 0-1-0 0 pts

Bracket C
Neusport FC 93 Green 1-0-1 11 pts
Santa Clarita United Blazers 1-0-0 8 pts
Eagles Premier 0-0-1 3 pts
Arsenal FC 0-2-0 0 pts

U16 Girls Super Division
Bracket A

Santa Clara Sporting 93/94 2-0-0 17 pts
San Diego Surf White 1-1-0 10 pts
North OKC OFC 94 1-1-0 8 pts
CZ Elite 0-2-0 3 pts

Bracket B

Slammers FC 93 1-0-0 10 pts
Sereno 94 White 1-0-0 8 pts
Oregon Rush 93 Nike 0-1-0 1 pts
Placer Prestige 94 Gold 0-1-0 0 pts

Bracket C
San Diego Surf Blue 2-0-0 16 pts
San Juan SC Spirits 94 Blue 0-0-2 6 pts
Mustang SC Rampage 0-1-1 4 pts
Real So Cal White 0-1-1 4 pts

U17 Boys Super Division       
Bracket A

FC San Diego Gold Quinn 1-0-1 11 pts
Real So Cal White 1-0-1 11 pts
Sereno 93 Boys White 0-0-2 6 pts
San Juan SC Lightning 93 Blue 0-0-2 1 pts

Bracket B

Legends FC 1-0-0 8 pts
South Bay Force Blue 1-0-0 8 pts
MVLA Raptors 92 Gold 0-1-0 0 pts
Gilbert Arsenal 93 Premier 0-1-0 0 pts

Bracket C
Santa Clara Sporting 2-0-0 18 pts
West Coast FC Premier 1-0-1 12 pts
San Diego Surf White 0-1-1 3 pts
Futeca Camp Elite 0-2-0 0 pts

U16 Boys Super Division
Bracket A

Sereno 94 White 2-0-0 19 pts
Calgary Foothills Saints 94 1-1-0 9 pts
San Diego Surf SC White 0-1-1 3 pts
Placer Prestige 94 Gold 0-1-1 2 pts

Bracket B

Atletico Santa Rosa Milan 0-0-1 4 pts
Elm Grove Premier 0-0-1 4 pts
Slammers FC B93 0-0-1 3 pts
South Bay Force 0-0-1 2 pts

Bracket C

Players SC 94 MS 1-0-1 12 pts
West Coast FC 1-0-1 11 pts
Tynecastle FC 93 0-1-1 3 pts
CAP FC United 93 0-1-1 2 pts

Bracket D

La Roca FC 94 Premier AO 1-0-0 9 pts
Westside Metros Premier 1-0-0 8 pts
Central California Blues 0-0-1 0 pts
De Anza Force SC 93 Blue 0-1-0 0 pts



















 

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