|
UNDER 18 STATE CUP CHAMPIONS
|
||
| Finals, 1/27/02 Nothing like nail biters to make things exciting! It took extra time for the girls and penalty kicks for the boys, but both the AFC Lightning 84 Gold and White teams emerged as State Champions. Playing against Tophat 02 Gold the girls were favored in their final. They were the number one seed and defending state champions for the past two years. Things seemed to get going well enough when Kristin Stewart scored twice in the first half putting them up 2-0. She was assisted by April Siuda on the first and Dana van Winkle on the second. Tophat was not ready to call it quits though. They scored in the first half and again in the second to tie the game 2-2. Despite numerous chances, Lightning was not able to get another goal. The game went to two 15 minute halves of extra time. Tabitha Lowey scored off of a Kristin Stewart cross to put Lightning up 3-2 in the first half of extra time. Melanie Schnieder scored from a through ball by van Winkle to ice the game at 4-2. Lightning 84 White has completed their dominance of their age group with their third consecutive state championship The tension was even greater with the boys. The "Comeback Kids" (see semifinal story below) fell behind in the second half 0-1 to the number one seed, Stone Mountain Storm. Undaunted, they scored two goals to take the lead 2-1. In the final minute of the game Stone Mountain Storm tied it up 2-2, sending it to extra time. Thirty more minutes of play saw no more goals. The game would be decided on penalty kicks. The 84's shot first and scored. Goalkeeper Michael "Bear" O'Conner saved Stone Mountain's first kick to put Lightning up 1-0. The excitement was short lived when Stone Mountain's keeper saved Lightning's next kick. O'Conner was able to get his hands on the next two Stone Mountain shots, but was not able to prevent them from going in the goal. At the end of the initial set of five kicks, it was tied 4-4, bringing up the one-for-one phase. The kicks continued until all other players, including both goalkeepers, had shot and scored. Players were now on their go around. All kicks by both teams were perfect. In the 19th round, Corey Jackson scored to make it 18-17. Stone Mountain still had to kick. Their goalkeeper took the shot. O'Conner dove to his right and was able to push the ball around the post giving Lightning the win. The official score: 2-2 tie with Lightning 84 Gold winning 18-17 on PK's. Both teams will go on to represent Georgia in the Region III tournament this summer in North Little Rock, Arkansas. We wish both teams success at the Regionals and hope that other Lightning teams will also win their age groups in early June to join them. Boys Semis, 1/26/02 After going down 0-3 in the first half of their semifinal against Columbus, the 84 Gold rallied for four goals in the second half to win 4-3. They will play against Stone Mountain in the final on Sunday, January 27th at 1:00 PM. The game will be at the Lovejoy Soccer Complex. On Saturday, January 26th the 84 Gold team will take on Columbus Red Star Gold in the Semifinals of the U18 Boys State Cup. The game will be at 12:00 noon at the Lovejoy Soccer Complex. The boys made it to the semis by winning their group with three strong performances in the opening round of play. In their first game, they beat United Quest White 8-0. This was followed by a 10-0 shelling of Concorde Silver and a close 3-2 win over 84 GSA Phoenix Red. The 84's lost in the semis last year, but were champions at U16 in 2000. We wish them all the best this year. On the Girls side, the 84 White team out scored their opponents by a total of 22-0. They beat United Quest 83 11-0, 84 PTC Lazers White 8-0 and MNYSA Metros 4-0. There is no semifinal for the girls. They will play in the final on Sunday, January 27th at 12:00 noon at Lovejoy. Their opponent will be Tophat '02 Gold. The 84's have been State Champions for the past two years at U16 and U17. We hope their success will continue for another year. COME OUT TO LOVEJOY AND SUPPORT OUR U18'S THIS WEEKEND! |
||