Capital Fall Classic: Day 1 Girls Weekend photo gallery

By Jimmy LaRoue

RICHMOND, Va.–The joy of the game, its intensity and skill were all on display on day one of the 2012 Capital Fall Classic girls’ weekend, and all of that was graced by clear skies and cool temperatures.

Many of the teams came to the River City to face strong competition, and teams like the Under-18 London Gryphons of Ontario, Canada, Chaos 97 Premier from Huntington, W.Va.–the top-rated team in its state–and three Soccer Vision Academy teams made long treks to get to Richmond. In the case of the London Gryphons, they drove 12 hours south and picked up wins Saturday against McLean MPS Power Green 94 and FC Richmond Mystx 94 to reach the semifinals of the U-18 Premier bracket.

Chaos 97 Premier, coming into the tournament with a new coach in Nicolette Bell, picked up two shutout wins in the U-15 Premier bracket. Bell, originally from Johannesburg, South Africa, played college soccer at Clemson and Marshall before staying in West Virginia to coach high school soccer at Huntington High School and has been with Chaos for the last year.

Soccer Vision Academy of Youngstown, Ohio, while a staple at tournaments in its immediate region, does not often venture away from the state, and made its longest trek to date, driving seven hours to play in a tournament by coming to Richmond, according to U-14 coach Greg Mitchell. SVA tied its morning game against West Chester United Predators 98 of Pennsylvania 1-1, and defeated FC Richmond Mystx 1-0 in the afternoon.

For all these teams, and the others playing in the Premier brackets, they’re seeking wins that would automatically qualify them for the Richmond Strikers’ flagship spring tournament, the Jefferson Cup, which attracts many of the top teams from around the country.

Here are these teams, and many others, captured in photos showing the joy, intensity, competitive spirit and skill on display at the Capital Fall Classic.