U12 girls kickers finish tournament with 3-1 record
GILROY – The Orchard Valley Tornadoes, an under-12 girls soccer squad, finished in third place at the District Cup over the weekend – compiling a 3-1 tournament record.
TORNADOES 3, WEST VALLEY FIREBOLTS 0
The Tornadoes started the tournament on a strong note, netting the maximum points available with a 3-0 shutout of the Firebolts. After a shakey start, the Tornadoes finally moved the ball into the offensive end, as Taylor Johnson scooped up a loose ball near midfield and broke away for the first goal. In the second half, the Tornadoes capitalized on a defensive miscue as the Firebolts failed to clear the ball, and Johnson was again there to score the goal. Amanda Whitling closed out the scoring with a nice left-footed shot off a centering pass from teammate JC Clayton.
TORNADOES 1, APTOS RIPTIDE 0
Goalie Nichole Downing and the defensive corps of Cloey LemMon, Stephanie Wan, Lindsay Pund, and Clarissa Hammer came up with a second straight shutout. Amanda Kline, Sarah Block, Taylor Johnson, and Hammer split time between the back and front lines. The midfielders, led by Amanda Whitling, Clayton, Lexi MacPhail, Bella Comin, and Alex Seda, gave excellent defensive support and controlled the field so that the Riptide was able to mount only one serious scoring threat. Downing was equal to the task as she made a nice save on the close-range shot. The Tornadoes scored when Whitling popped the ball through to a streaking Johnson who broke away for the score, sending the Tornadoes to the Sunday Semifinals with an unblemished record.
TORNADOES 0, JUVENTUS DESTINY 1
On Sunday morning, the Tornadoes stubbed their toes, losing to a very tough Destiny team – giving up their only goal of the tournament just minutes into the contest. The Tornadoes battled the Destiny evenly from then on, and had multiple opportunities to tie it up late, but could not cash in. The Destiny made the lone goal stand up to put them into the championship game, and forced the Tornadoes to battle for third place.
TORNADOES 1, MT. HAMILTON RAYS 0
On Sunday afternoon, the Tornadoes came up with perhaps their best effort, shutting out a solid Rays’ team for the one-nil gem. The Tornadoes came up with a strong defensive effort, and manufactured enough offense to get on the scoreboard. The scoring play involved four offensive players touching the ball before it was put in. Amanda Kline triggered the play with a long throw-in to JC Clayton, who screened her defender nicely and dropped the ball back to a trailing Amanda Whitling. Whitling made a nice leading cross to a cutting Taylor Johnson, who drilled the open shot for the game-winner.
