U12 girls kickers take win, tie, and loss in three-game
jamboree
BELMONT – The Tornadoes U12 girls competitive kickers traveled to Belmont for a three-game Jamboree against some very strong teams. The strength of the field was evidenced by the fact that in the six-game event, no team scored more than one goal in a game. The Tornadoes had every flavor of result, battling the 90-plus degree heat to come home with a tie, a win, and a loss.
ORCHARD VALLEY TORNADOES 0, WEST VALLEY DIVAS 0
The Tornadoes matched up with their league rivals, the Divas, in the first game of the Jamboree, and gave a much better showing than in league play. The Tornadoes had the better opportunities to score, having the ball right in front of the goal on more than one occasion, but were not able to capitalize. Goalie Nichole Downing registered another shutout on a day when “everybody played everywhere” in an effort to keep the girls fresh in view of the heat and back-to-back games. Cloey Lemmon, Stephanie Wan, Sarah Block, and Lindsay Pund turned in their usual solid defensive efforts. Taylor Johnson and Amanda Kline also turned in fine defensive efforts, as did midfielders JC Clayton, Bella Comin, Lexi MacPhail, Alex Seda, and Mary Thatcher. Amanda Whitling and Clarissa Hammer led the forward corps, as most of the girls took shifts at several different positions.
ORCHARD VALLEY TORNADOES 1, STANFORD WILDFIRE 0
Surprisingly, in the game in which they should have been the most tired, the Tornadoes came up with probably their best game of the weekend, and certainly their best result – downing a previously unbeaten Wildfire. Nichole Downing saw action in the field as the two Amandas, Whitling and Kline, relieved Downing in goal for one half each, and continued the shutout streak. It looked as though the OV team would come away with two scoreless ties on the day, as the Tornadoes could not find the back of the net until JC Clayton’s strike. Clayton came up with the ball in the Tornadoes defensive end, and moved up field, breaking through the last line of defense to beat the goalie for the game-winner.
ORCHARD VALLEY TORNADOES 0, BELMONT 1
Had the soccer gods looked just a bit more kindly on the Tornadoes, they could easily have come away with another win. The Tornadoes worked themselves into several very good scoring opportunities, but were not able to capitalize. The Tornadoes had one defensive lapse on a throw-in from the corner, and a Belmont forward ripped the shot into the top of the net for the only score of the game.
