2012 Virginian Coverage Central

Welcome to the 2012 Virginian soccer tournament “Coverage Central”. This weekend The Soccer Wire will have roving reporters and a remote content director keeping tabs on action at various venues throughout Northern Virginia. We’ll be posting regular updates here, tweeting on @thesoccerwire and filling longer-form summaries in the evening, and throughout the weeks after the last 2012 ball has been kicked.

Got a tip for us or really interesting story about what it took for your team to make it to the Virginian? Any fond memories of this massive event from year’s past? After 36 years, most everyone who’s ever played travel soccer east of the Mississippi river the past three decades has spent a Memorial Day weekend in Virginia suburbs!

Use the comment feature below to add your thoughts.

Check out all the articles on the tournament, as well as the Twitter feed on our Soccer Wire Virginia Home Page

Official Virginian home page at www.soccertournament.com

Direct link to schedules here.

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DAY 3

7:00: Ladies and gentleman, this marks the end of our coverage of the 2012 Virginian Memorial Day Weekend Tournament. I’m Roger Gonzalez, and it has been a pleasure. I leave you with the boys winners and girls winners of the weekend. Best wishes and see you soon!

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6:00: The final game of the day was a heart-stopper. Read all about it here!

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5:30: Some of the top games today were seen by our Kevin Smith. Here is his recap of some of today’s best action. 

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4:30: Reston Elite girls take U13 Premier Bronze crown. 

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3:30: Here is the match report on FASA Elite (Va) slipping by Ashburn Extreme in PKs to claim U16 Boys Gold Division trophy.

3:30: Here is the match report of the battle between Takoma Celtics (Md) and Culpeper Comets in the  U17 Boys Silver championship.

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2:30: Many teams have been crowned champions as a few of the final matches are finishing up. Click here to see who has won!

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1:00: Here are some juicy nuggets updating us on all the happenings of the final day of the tournament:

From Poplar Tree Park 8:30 games —

Boys U13

SYC Strikers Gold 3, Chantilly Thunder 1.

The SYC Strikers Gold (Va) took down Chantilly Thunder (Va) 3-1 in the final of the Boys U13 Premier Silver division.

Coach Julian Chang, to say the least, was more than pleased.

“We’re division five, we came all the way from division seven, six and five, and it looks like we’ll be moving up to four,” Chang said. “The boys have made very good improvements, and we’ve got some high aspirations. I was telling the boys, It doesn’t matter where you’re at right now, it’ where you’re going, so we have some very motivated players.”

Chang stated that the fatigue of players after playing five games in 3 days took a toll

“Well right now, I think they’ve forgotten how tired they are, but at the beginning of the day they were definitely tired,” he said. “At the start of the game, they were clearly still tired from our game last night because we’ve been on turf all weekend. It was really hot but it was a very well-fought game.”

In another final…

Boys U17-19

Century United (Pa) over NVSC Royals (Va), 7-1 in Gold Division title match. Here are some notes and quotes from the game.

Jessie Scheirer, who scored three of the goals:

“Me and Zach (Partyka) have been playing on the same team since we were three years old,” he said. “And a lot of the rest of the team has been together since fifth or sixth grade.”

Zach Partyka, who also found the net:

“The chemistry has gotten so good we don’t even see the guy, we just know where they’re going to be, we’ve been playing together so long,” he said.

Scheirer on Partyka:

“I’ve been playing for 15 years right next to this kid, so I know every single thing he’s going to do before he does it,” he said.

Scheirer is a rising sophomore playing for University of Vermont and Partyka is going to play as a freshman at Alderson-Broaddus (WV).

This was Century United’s first time at The Virginian. They’re a little above the age group of most teams.

“We were playing against teams younger than us, and were probably a little bigger and more mature,” Scheirer said. “I wouldn’t say we were more skilled though.”

Century United used the Virginian as a tune up for the state cup next weekend, while Royals were actually resting some of their best players who have to play in high school regionals this week.

Century’s coach, pleased with the result, spoke about his star player after the three-goal match.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a kid nearly as athletic as Jesse [Scheirer] is, his balance and his strength is unbelievable,” Dave Gray said.

The coach also spoke about soccer in the Commonwealth.

“Virginia soccer is one of the powerhouses in the region for a reason,” he said. “The players are very skillful, and they keep the ball. To our detriment, Pa. teams play a more physical brand of soccer, so when we play these more skillful Virginia teams, it’s a challenge for us. But I like the style of play here, it’s fun to watch the Virginia kids play.”

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11:00: Update on some early games from Kevin Smith.

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10:00: In U17-19 boys gold division final right now, Century United (Pa) is up 3-0 late in the first half over NVSC Royals (Va). Oh wait, two quick goals in the span of 15 minus sees the visitors from the north up 5-0!

Did you know that for Century United, about nearly all of the players has been playing together in various teams for 10 years?

All the scorers in today’s game are Jesse Scheirer, Matt McDyer, Zach Partyka and Ryan Luffey, and they all have been teammates for basically their whole careers.

9:30: Welcome back again to TSW’s coverage of the 2012 Virginian. I’m Roger Gonzalez, and I will be providing the updates on the final day of the competition. Who will leave with a trophy? Who will exit with nothing to show from it? You will find out all of that and more as we lead the coverage throughout the day. Now, for some updates…

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DAY 2

6:00: Boys U16 semifinal match report by Kevin Smith:

In the Boys U16 division, things were running behind schedule by the time the Ashburn Extreme (Va) took the field against PWSI Courage White (Va) at Wakedfield Park due to the overtime contest of an earlier semifinal that was resolved via exciting penalty kicks. It was 3:09 when Ashburn first kicked the ball for their 2:15 fixture.

In the early going, the Courage demonstrated strong push into the Ashburn end from its back line and strong play of the Courage midfielders, in spite of good pressure from the Ashburn squad.

Despite playing a favored Ashburn squad, the Courage entered half-time with a 1-0 lead on Anthony Ipanaque’s goal halfway through the opening period. The Ashburn squad played stronger as the half progressed, however, it struggled to generate shots on goal against a swarming, relentless Courage defense, repeatedly turning the ball over deep in Courage territory.

The second half started much how the first half ended, with the ball primarily in the Courage end of the field with occasional breakaways by the Courage players, which ended in quality shots on the Ashburn goal. By all appearances, the Courage appear to be pulling a “Rope-a-Dope,” the boxing strategy made famous by Muhammad Ali. The Courage kept absorbing Ashburn’s body blows by dropping extra men into the defensive third of the field when Ashburn attacked. Meanwhile, the team picked and chose when and where to deliver its punches, sending their speedy wingmen on the attack down the flanks, putting pressure on Ashburn’s outside defenders.

With five minutes left, the Courage goalie came up with a big save on a penalty kick from just outside the box, a save that appeared to seal the victory. But with Courage starting goalie Kyle Petty removed with a leg injury after a late collision with an Ashburn player, Ashburn tied the game on Myron Hernandez’s last-minute goal to send the game to overtime.

The loss of Petty loomed large in the first half of overtime play as Ashburn’s Sergio Resendiz buried a shot off a crossing pass from Hernandez. That play turned out to be the difference in the game, as Ashburn advanced on the back of their 2-1 overtime win over the Courage, sealing a spot in the final against FASA Elite (Va) who went to OT & PKs against the SYC Gunners (Va.) at 12:30 at Poplar Tree Park in Chantilly.

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4:00: In U15 Boys Silver, Virginia’s SYC Surge Blue 96’s coach Steven Wagoner sat down with TSW ahead of a huge 4:45 clash. Below is the interview:

On prepping for semis later in the hot afternoon versus SYA Ajax Silver (Va).

“Honestly its just going to be mental. It’s one of those thing where they’re going to have to battle. And they’re a great group of kids, so that’s pretty much all it’s going to come down to because it’s so hot. 

On Ajax, their opponent, who they beat 2-1 in last meeting:

“They’re a great opponent. We go way back with them in the ODSL, so that should be a lot of fun. I’m really looking forward to it. They’re a great team so it should be a battle to the end.”

On the Virginian:

“I grew up playing in it myself, and I think its a great tournament. It’s a decent college showcase for some people and its one of those tournaments where you can play for three days, instead of just three games and out.”

On the rest of the remaining field:

“Arlington has a great shot. I think it comes down to who’s gonna show up and who comes to play mentally. This is going to be some teams fourth, fifth, even sixth game in a span of three days, so if you can stay on top of your game mentally, that’s about it.”

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3:00: Game Wrap — 9 :15 Girl’s Premier Gold Girls U14

Loundon Red vs. Reston Wildfire

After a quick-strike goal early in the first half by the 2-0 Reston Wildfire’s (Va) Claire Meiser,
the team settled into a back-and-forth affair with the Loudoun Red (2-0) squad in the Girls U14 Gold
Division. Later in the half, Loudoun’s Bailey Hackley, tied the game up off a corner kick.

The affair was marred by both team’s inability to take advantage of errors by their
opponents. Shortly after Hackley’s goal, Loudoun failed to capitalize on the Reston defenders’ inability
to control the ball well at the back as nerves appeared to take over.

Late in the first half, which saw Reston on its heels, the team opened with a strong push into the Loudoun territory, only to be turned back. Soccer is a game of ebb and flow, , and Loudoun quickly worked its way back into Reston’s territory, failing to capitalize on a second corner kick opportunity.

Midway through the second half, both teams seemed to have difficulty controlling the ball out of the
middle, repeatedly trading possessions that came up short of scoring.

After a flurry of activity in the final minutes in front of the Reston goal in the closing minutes, the
neighboring teams found themselves in a 1-1 tie, resulting in a 20-minute overtime, consisting of
two 10-minute halves.

Loudoun upped the intensity in extra time, constantly pressuring the Reston defenders throughout. The increased pressure resulted in a fluke goal in the second minute of the second half of
overtime.

With Loudoun controlling the ball just to the side of the Reston goal, Loudoun’s Rifsha
Shamsher fired a crossing pass that ricocheted off the back of a Reston defender and past the
Wildfire goalie to break the 1-1 tie. The late, dramatic goal was the difference in the game, sending Loudoun Red to Monday’s final for a shot at the trophy.

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Crush Blue def host SYC Pride United 4-3 in penalty kicks to move onto finals

After playing even for two halves, followed by an additional 20 minutes of overtime, with stifling mid-
field play,  it’s completely possible that there weren’t more than a dozen legitimate scoring chances
between Blue and United during regulation. The semifinal round between the two Virginia teams
came down to which goalie could make the big stop in the penalty kick tie-breaker.

With both teams missing their first shots high, the kick tackers settled down and kept their kicks down with precision, matching goal for goal through the next three kicks, until Maddie Malooly made Blue’s fifth attempt.
Then, the team’s goalie, Caitlin Dorsch, came up with the big save, diving to her left, punching the ball away, sealing a spot for Blue in tomorrow’s finals.

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1:00: More from Kevin Smith in Northern Virginia on injuries and they are having:

Injuries are the dark side of the game. In any game, they can be killers, career enders or just annoyances. They are also a hot  issue.

Craig Veazie, a longtime on-site trainers for the tournament, has had plenty to do so far.

The types of injuries “you see depends a lot on the age group,” he said. “The younger groups you see a lot more contusions and abrasions. The older they are, the more acceleration and velocity they have when they [collide], so you have higher instances of concussions and impact injuries.”

The heat, said Veazie, “doesn’t tend to be a problem. The tournament [organizers] are very good at communicating conditions to the teams [traveling to Virginia for the tournament].

With 501 teams competing, injuries are bound to happen. For the trainer, winning doesn’t come down to goals.

“A winning game is when a team walks off the field healthy and safe,” he said.

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12:00: An update from Kevin Smith at the cup:

As the second matches of the day begin in the Under 14 Girls division of the Virginian, only one team finds itself ensconced as a finals participant. Loudoun Black (Va) started their 9:15 match as the only team assured to be playing in Monday’s match for the Premier Silver West championship title.
The team did not dominate on Saturday, but the team went 1-0-1, owning the tie breaker over the 0-1-1 NVSC Jr Majestics (Va) whom they beat on Satuday.

11:00: Our Quinn Casteel, who is covering the tournament, posted two stories, wrapping up some of the action on both the boys and girls.

Here you can find what happened with the guys.

Click here, to check out how some of the ladies did.

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9:30: Good morning soccer fans! Welcome back to The Soccer Wire’s live coverage of the Virginian! I’m Roger Gonzalez, back with you again, and we are looking forward to bringing some great content to you here on Day 2. Many teams have a chance to take another big step forward in the quest for a trophy, while other players are hoping this is the day that the catch the eyes of college coaches. Be sure to stick with us throughout the day for updates. As always, continue to check Twitter for score updates and for pictures!

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DAY 1

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6:00: Thanks for joining TSW for Day 1 of the tournament. That is it from me, Roger Gonzalez, for the day, but it is not all you will get from the site! More updates are still to come throughout the evening and night courtesy of our talented writers. As always, stay tuned to our Twitter feed for even more information, and be sure to join me back here tomorrow for even more coverage!

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5:00: We are near the end of Day 1 here at the Virginian. It has certainly been a special day for many. Several teams got off on the right foot, while others stumbled out of the gates.

Just now, Kevin Smith checked in with a post dealing with injuries. Check it out:

Injuries play a role in every sport. A severe injury can change the fortunes of a championship team, multiple injuries can hurt chemistry and end a season or a tournament early for even the best of squads

For Beth Cohen, coach of FASA Premiere Impact, injuries have tested her skills as a master juggler.

Injuries to four starters, she said, has lead to the majority of her team playing out of position during the tournament. Concussions, contusions and broken ankles have forced the coach to rely on her fall back.

“It’s tough,” Cohen said. “[But], I coach them to play every position.”

Even so, being without several of her top defenders caused concern, until beating rival SASA Revolution in the morning match.
More frustrating still is being among the injured. Team captain and injured defender Amani Jones explained, “on a scale of one to 10, it’s definitely a 10 [for frustration]. You want to play, to help your teammates and you can’t.”

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4:00: As day one nears its end, more results are flying into to TSW, courtesy of Quinn Casteel.  In U17 boys action:

YVS United White (Va) lost 1-0 in its first match to the NVSC Jr Royals 95 (Va)

Jersey Knights (NJ) and VYS United White (Va) played out a 0-0 tie in Group A.

Jersey Knights tied its first match with Warriors (NY) 2-2.

In addition, here is some more insight from Quinn, who managed to grab some interviews:

Noel Jamison, father of Jade Jamison who scored two goals for LaPlata Knights (Md) in a 4-2 loss to SYC Xplosion (Va) this morning.

“I like to sit back and enjoy the games, win or lose,” Jamison said. “Today’s game was very winnable but it is what it is. We’ve got another game in a little while and they may run out of gas. The girls need to gas up!”

On what he will tell his daughter in between matches.

 “I’ll tell her to forget about it, rest up and get ready to go at 3:30,” he said. 

Also, here more from from Tom Venn, the coach of the Xplosion on multi-game days.

“On days like this, they’ve got to get out of the heat and cool off, get some drinks…” Venn said. “When it’s time for the next day, we come out and warm up only about three minutes before the start of the game.  We can’t push them in warm-ups because they’re already soaking wet and tired before the game even gets going.”

The coach also praised those helping out.

“You can’t forget about the volunteers,” he said. “We have so many parents that came out first thing this morning at 8:00 and won’t finish until 10:00 tonight. And they’re going to have to come out and do it again tomorrow, and then again on Monday. There’s a lot of parents that were willing to come out and volunteer, and without them we wouldn’t have a tournament. Sometimes there’s not enough thanks to those that bring tremendous effort. I think our players really appreciate what their parents do. They see their parents working for them, and they want to work just as hard on the field. It all starts with our parents and they really put us in a good position.”

On tournament play.

“I normally don’t like having my teams play in tournaments as much as I used to, unless it’s to warm up for the season and get used to each other again,” Venn said. “Unless it’s something fun, like last September we went up to Pennsylvania for a rafting tournament. One day we played four games in the tournament and the next day we went rafting.”

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2:30: Kevin Smith checks in with a weather update and an expulsion update:

On a day like today, the heat is every team’s 12th opponent. By noon, temperatures on the artificial turf on fields one and two at Lake Fairfax Park were estimated to exceed 100 degrees. As teams take the field in the blazing heat, coaches are forced to adjust, increasing the frequency with which they sub, giving players more rest, and more water.

For one team, the temperature wasn’t the main issue.

The game of soccer is demanding under normal conditions. Being fit is a must. And, while the addition of the heat is brutal, a red card can be even more devastating to a team’s outcome.

Virginia’s SASA Revolution’s U15 girls acting head coach Dave Sebuck had to adjust to losing striker Kara Raumbah to a red card late in the f irst half of his team’s 2-1 loss to FASA Premiere Impact (Va)

“It takes away a little bit of your attack,” he explained. “It puts a lot of pressure on the girls.”

The pressure didn’t end with being one player down for the second half. The Revolution will lose Raumbah’s services for the team’s next game, leaving the Revolution with a thinner bench.

“It’s an opportunity for another girl to step up,” said Sebuck.

Only time will tell if they can and return to contention for a trophy after an early loss.

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1:30: Quinn Casteel covered the U16 Girls Silver Division this morning, and SYC Xplosion (Va) Coach Tim Venn, also the women’s soccer coach at Woodson High School, was more than pleased as his Xplosion beat LaPlata Knights (Md) 4-2 in the 10:30 game this morning. The winners play again against Chantilly Fuego (Va) at 2:15 today.

“It was a hot day so it was a little hard to put a tremendous effort out there,” Venn said. “It’s easy to get tired quickly in the heat. We got up 2-0, then the other team battled back with two goals. We settled down after that and in the last six or seven minutes we came up with two goals to get the victory.

“That was the first time Kristine (Clark) has ever really put the ball in the back of the net and it’s the first time she’s ever scored two goals.

“Katie [Voegtlin] (also had two goals) is a goal-scorer. She always has a nose for the goal and if you give her an ample opportunity she’s going to put the ball in the net. Both of them work hard and they always deserve what they get.”

The coach also took time to speak about the tournament.

 “We’ve been coming to the Virginian since we started, it’s been two years,” he said. “We’re responsible for running this site [Patriot Park]. The parents do a lot of the work. It’s a long three-and-a-half days and it’s a very well-run tournament. That’s always a big positive, and you’ve got a lot of teams coming out and you can’t ask for anything better. We’ve got trainers that come out to the sites which is great because when something happens we have somebody that’s there immediately to help us out with injuries and things like that.”

What about facing unfamiliar opponents?

“That’s always a good thing because when you’re playing teams you’ve seen before, you know how they play,” the coach said. “It’s good to be able to see teams where you have no idea how they play, what styles and what formations they use. You’ve got to adapt and shift through formations and work on tactics that you don’t have to when you’re playing against familiar opponents. Out here, you have no idea what to expect, but then again, when you play teams you know there’s always that rivalry.”

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12:30: Plenty of games are ending shortly here at the tournament! For score updates, be sure to check out the Twitter feed here.  Also, be sure to check back shortly for some notes and quotes on some of the early games!

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11:30: From Kevin Smith at the tournament covering U15 girls, where the heat is taking over.

“Overheard as a FASA Premier Impact player came to the bench for a rest, “my feet are on fire.” Expected to be a factor, the heat continues to impact play on the turf as coaches for Premier and SASA Revolution (both VA teams) sub often.”

As for Casteel, he caught up with BAC Apex coach Larry Rice after his team’s 1-1 draw with Beach FC in U16 Girls Silver action to talk about the heat and the tournament.

“Apex coach Larry Rice on playing at 9:15, then playing the same day at 1:00.

‘It’s all about staying hydrated, eating something light and getting out of the sun,’ the coach said. ‘Also, before this afternoon’s game I have iced wash rags to get their heads wet before the game, and that’s probably the most important thing to do during warmups.’

The coach and his players are on their return trip to the cup.

‘We played at the Virginian two or three years ago and didn’t do too well,’ Rice said. ‘But the team has changed and grown. We climbed all the way from the bottom of the ODSL, all the way to winning division 1 and now we’re in third place of the WAGs division.

‘We’ve been looking forward to the Virginian a lot because most of the local tournaments we’ve been doing, with the exception of Virginian, its always the same teams. It’ s fun to play teams like Beach FC. They’re a great team and it’s great competition, so it’s more fun.’”

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10:30: Quinn Casteel and Kevin Smith are on site in Northern Virginian for the cup and have been providing some fantastic updates so far. First, a weather update courtesy of Smith, who is at CSL FC Fury (Va) versus  Stars United (Pa) in U15 Girls Gold.

“Day is heating up quickly out here. Teams today that will be most successful will be the ones that are best keeping the players rested and hydrated, especially on the artificial turf of field one of Lake Fairfax Park. PA’s Stars subbing in waves in effort two beat the heat.”

With that said, Emily Wagner managed to put the Stars up 1-0.

Casteel is spending his morning watching U16 Girls Silver.

“In Group A, Beach FC (Va) is up 1-0 on BAC Apex (Va) at the half. Amazing chip shot by Kristen Ellis of FC Beach lofted over the keeper just before half. Solid 20 yards out on the goal, keeper couldn’t even make an attempt because it was so far over her head, but had enough arch to sneak under the crossbar.”

But, the game was tied up with little to go thanks to Kristie Kelly, and the match has ended at 1-1!

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9:30: Welcome ladies and gentleman to The Soccer Wire’s LIVE COVERAGE of the 2012 Virginian soccer tournament this Memorial Day Weekend. I’m Roger Gonzalez, and I will be providing updates throughout the day on this major tournament! We have two people on site at the cup that will be feeding scores of updates throughout the weekend, so stick with us for the top coverage you will find. As always, be sure to check out the Twitter feed above and come back frequently for match updates!