Boys Varsity Soccer Championship

INCOMING FIRE -- Griffin Goalie Santiago Maldonado and other defenders brace themselves  as Jaguar shot descends through the night. Eli Vilar, International

Jaguars triumph over Griffins 3-1

 The Cooperative boys varsity soccer team defeated International 3-1 in an epoch-marking victory on their home field before a large crowd Tuesday afternoon.
 The Jaguars thus completed an undefeated season, with the only blemish on their record being a 0-0 tie against International earlier in the season. The Jaguars thus atoned for last year, when they were undefeated -- except for the championship game in which they were beaten by Cambridge 3-2.

NOT MUCH JOY IN MUDVILLE -- A big crowd of fans
 urged the Griffins on. Maria Eugenia Zelada, International

  The victory also completed a sweep for Cooperative over two days of all four SCISL competitions this season -- boys and girls soccer as well as boys and girls volleyball. It is the first time in recent memory (and perhaps ever) that one school has dominated play to that extent. The Jaguar varsity teams lost only two contests this season, both in volleyball to International.
  The win in the championship game was the result of putting relentless offensive pressure on International, while forcing the Griffins to take mostly long and often hurried shots at the Jaguar goal.
   The game was scoreless for much of the first half, though International goalie Santiago Maldonado had to make two diving saves to keep it that way.
. Cooperative finally broke the ice on an artful  free kick play in which Juan Carlos Laguna faked the kick toward the right-hand side, and as he jumped over the ball Jose Manuel Vasquez stepped up and lashed a screeching drive into the upper left corner of the goal.
    Jean Bretel made it 2-0 for the Jaguars when he out.fought Maldonado for the ball on the left hand side of the goal, and then banged it past a helpless defender.   That's where the score stood at halftime.
   Vasquez struck again well into the second half when he took control of a long kick upfield, zagged away from the remaining defender, and banged thew ball past Maldonado into the far side of the goal.
    International got its score in the closing stage of the game when  Andre Estenssoro was knocked down in the penalty area, and made good on his penalty shot.
    Cooperative repeatedly threatened to break through for more, with Vasquez, Bretel, Santiago Paz, and Jorge Zankis  coming close on several occasions.
    The Griffins had their chances too. Twice in the first half Griffin speedster Jorge Harriague was able to burst into an open field with ball, but his long shots launched at full speed went wide of the mark.
 International took the ball into the Jaguar end many times in the second half, but only once, on a sizzling cross, did they force Jaguar goalie Eduardo Rivera to make a truly spectacular save. More frequently the shots came in as fly balls -- or, in a few cases,  line drives -- that Rivera fielded cleanly.
   A bleacher-full of  Griffin fans augmented by two bass drums urged their team on often out-shouting a sparser group of Jaguar adherents armed with only a snare drum, but it was to no avail. It was the Jaguars day.
  Playing for the victorious Jaguars were Rivera, Jose Mozza, Hyun Kim, Esteban Sauto, Juan Alfredo Abuawad,  Josue Abuawad, Laguna, Bretel, Paz, Jose David Sanchez, Vazquez, Camilo Avila, Leonardo Landivar, Rafael Sakuma, Zankiz, Nicolas Aguirre, Alejando Rosas, and Jose Marco Salvatierra.
  The line-up for the Griffins was Daniel Roempler, Andres MacLean, Christian Coronado, Francisco Gonzalez, Maldonado, Estenssoro, Gary Suarez, Maykol Villavicencio, Jorge Harriague, Jorge Capobianco, Alejandro Rios, Santiago Rosado, Sebastian Velasco, Mauricio Nostas, Fernando Muñoz, Javier Barron, Joaquin Wray, and Andre Candia.

Girls Varsity Soccer Championship

ONE, TWO, THREE . . .  KICK -- Jaguar Fernanda Vaca Diez and Griffin defender look choreographed as they battle for the ball. Carlos Paredes, Cooperative 

Female Jags roar in final, win  3-0

By Sung Eun Song
International School
 The Cooperative girls varsity soccer team defeated International 3-0, keeping alive their seemingly eternal winning streak going back to 2007, and their streak of six consecutive  League soccer titles going back to the founding of the League in 2005
 The championship game was played on the Jaguars home field Tuesday afternoon.

 The Jaguars unleashed fierce attacks as soon as the game started, not giving the Griffins a scoring chance while engaging in seeming ceaseless shooting. The reason they didn't score was in large part because of the fast feet of Griffin defender Flavia Nostas. 

 .Then, in an ironic twist, Ana Gutierrez of Internationalk accounted for the first Cooperative goal when a fast crossing pass from Jaguar Tania Landivar across the mouth of the goal seemed to take her by surprise, and she accidentally knocked the ball into her own goal for a 1-0 Cooperative lead. It was the third time this year International had inadvertently put the ball in its own goal in games against Cooperative. 

ALL HAIL -- Jaguar Sofia Sotelo (19) accepts the
 plaudits of teammates after her goal made it 2-0.
 Maria Eugenia Zelada, International 

 But if International was feeling snake-bit it didn't show, and from the middle of the first half the Griffins began a counterattack. Natalia Davila was a persistent attacker who continuously ran the ball down and tried to engineer opportunities to score. Her efforts won her several corner kicks --but no goals. 

 As the game progressed the Jaguars seeme to regain momentum. She took a few corner kicks, but couldn’t score a goal.  Among several great chances was a shot by Fernanda Vaca Diez who took charge of a kick that came all the way from Cooperative goalie Karla Aguilera. Vaca Diez  kicked the ball hard in front of the goal, but the shot  hit the post and bounced out.

 It was Sofia Sotelo who finally scored Cooperative's first real point of a game. She drove through the defense and blasted it in, giving the Jaguars a 2-0 lead at halftime.

 As the second half began  International tried hard to make scoring chances, but had trouble getting past the  middle of the field. 

 Camila Johnson of International played very tough defense, tussling hard for the ball.  Ana Paula Peredo and Carla Limpias were Cooperative's outstanding defenders. Whenever Peredo passed the ball upfield high, the ball always landed accurately  where Cooperative players were positioned. Limpias cleared the ball from in front of the Cooperative goal  without hesitation, guarding Coopperative’s goal perfectly.

 The overall play was closely matched  at this point, though the Cooperative girls had the edge and in the closing minutes of the game the Jaguars sealed their championship victory by scoring one more point. It was Paola Querejazu  who masterfully kicked into the goal a ball that had been bouncing back and forth frantically in front of the goal. 

 The main keys of Cooperative’s winning were their accurate passing, disciplined shooting, and perfect defense.  They were prepared and, hence, confident. Most of their starting players willñ be back next year.  It seems like the rest of varsity girls teams will need to practice hard to defeat the Jaguar girls and write a new page in League history in next year's championship.

 Historical note: A careful polling of SCISL veterans has determined that Cooperative last lost a game in 2007. Christian Learning defeated the Jaguars in the opening game of the season 1-0 on a penalty kick by Eagle Daniela Brooks. The Jaguars were tied twice in 2008, once by Christian Learning 1-1 and once by Cambridge 0-0. The tie with Cambridge was the last time the Cooperative girls hads been held scoreless. The Jaguars girls were undefeated and untied in 2009 and 2010 in both SCISL and Friendship Games competition. The closes they came to losing or being tied this year was a 2-1 game with International in which the Jaguars trailed for most of the game. 

   Playing for the Jaguars were goalie Karla Aguilera, Ana Paula Peredo, Carla Limpias, Maria Jose Rivero, Aldana Roda, Paola Querejazu, Tania Landivar, Sofia Sotelo, Fernanda Vaca Diez, Audrey Saucedo, Marareña Valdez, Paulina Aguirre, and Rosleny Kefer.

 The Griffin line-up: Fabiana Zelada, Albamarina Perez, Ana Gutierrez, Lila Dueri, Maria Isabel Barrenechea, Natalia Davila, Camila Johnson, Matilde Gamarra, Natalia Suarez, Natalia Johnson,Regina Landivar, Adriana Ocampo, Stephanie Giotto, Maria Victoria Gutierrez, Laura Maragaño, and Flavia Nostas.
   (Editor's Note --Presentation of this story was delayed because SCISL News reporter Sung Eun Song of International School was in a traffic accident Tuesday. The taxi she was traveling in to go home from the championships rear-ended another car. We are pleased to be able to report that Song's injuries are not serious, mainly scratches, and that she expects to be back on the job for the JV Championships next Thursday. )

SHARP TURN -- Jaguar Maria Jose Rivero (9) looks for a way to clear the ball out of her end.  Carlos Paredes, Cooperative

Boys Varsity Soccer Consolation Game

ATTEMPTED THEFT -- Eagle Richard Enns (9) comes out of the shadows to try to steal the ball. Katarina Holland, Christian Learning

Knights beat Eagles in shootout 

 The Cambridge boys varsity soccer team defeated Christian Learning by just about the narrowest margin possible in the contest for third place Tuesday afternoon at Cooperative.
 The game ended in a 2-2 tie, and the ensuing shootout was tied 4-4 after the normal five shooters had taken their turns. Cambridge won on the sixth shot, 5-4.
 Though Cambridge had won both of the two previous meetings between the teams, the Eagle boys had clearly come to play and show that their strong showing against Cooperative in the semifinals was no fluke. However, they were missing two stars, forward Andre Larsen and defender Sylvester Chavarria.
 In the opening stages play went back and forth with neither team able to take a lead.  Cambridge seemed to have a it of an edge, but Eagles were able to counter and threaten as well.
 The Knights almost broke through with about 25 minutes gone in the half as a cross from the left side rolled across the goal mouth, but no one was able to get a foot on it.  The Eagles had a similar opportunity, but two  forwards failed to connect, and it appeared the game would go to halftime scoreless. 
  However just a couple minutes before the halftime whistle, a Christian learning corner kick found its way to ground level at the far post and (so it was said) came off Richard Ling's head and Cesar Flores' shoulder. The 1-0 halftime score represented the first time the Eagles had led at the half this year. 
 With a game this even, it seemed inevitable that things would change and within the first five minutes of the second half, and Knight Mateo Asturizaga lifted a shot that cleared Eagle goalie Wesley Ordonez hands and zipped  into the goal for the tie at 1-1.
  Unhappy with the sudden turn of events, the Eagles answered almost immediately, Caleb Ropp burying his second goal of the season, and lead swung back to Christian learning  2-1. 
 Cambridge, unwilling to go home quite yet, turned up the jets a notch and added their second goal.  A long free kick hit the crossbar and bounced out to where tenth grader Tadeo Carmona was waiting to check-mate it into the net with a hard volley, tying the score again at  2-2. 
 Geo Pyung Lim had a chance to win the game with a run in front of the Cambridge net, but didn't get enough on the ball to get it past goalkeeper Jose Luis Ribera.From this point on, Cambridge seemed to tire, but Christian Learning didn't seem able to capitalize on the Knights fatigue.
  And the Knights had enough left to launch two more potent chances, one pushed out of danger by Ordoñez,  and the other sailing just wide of its own accord.  Penalties loomed as the final whistle blew.

 The shootout unfolded in dramatic fashion as the Eagles first shooter, Luis Doi, missed, giving the Knights a one goal advantage. The first four shooters for Cambridge all made their shots, as did the next four Eagle shooters, letting Knight Kevin Pulis, the fifth Cambridge shooter, a chance to put the game away, but he missed wide left.

  But then Ribera stopped Nick Smith's attempt to hit the right-hand side, and Carmona Cambridge tucked his penalty into the far left corner to bring the contest to a conclusion. end the Eagle hopes of some redemption at the end of a season full of frustration. Shootout scorers for the Eagles were Caleb Ropp, Richard Ling, Richard Enns and Trevor Reed.  CC scorers were Alvaro Lopez, Matias Martinez, Fabricio Subirana and Gabriel Alonso. 

Girls Varsity Soccer Consolation Game

Lady Eagles soar. score 4-0 win

 The Christian Learning girls varsity soccer team finished its season in  impressive style with a 4-0 victory over Cambridge Tuesday afternoon on the Cooperative field.
  The Eagles, suiting up without either of their senior center backs (one busy, the other called in sick) and having to activate a second 7th grader for the game just to have 11 players, faced a determined (but also slightly short-handed) Cambridge  squad on a hot, sunny afternoon.
 Christian Learning, which had won both previous meetings between the two teams, controlled the game from the start, and the Eagles took the lead early on when Mariela Salinas punched in a short shot. That ended the scoring in the first half, but not before Eagle goalie Sharon Gabler had to pounce on a loose ball in the middle of a dusty scramble to preserve the lead just before half time.
  Eagle star forward Abby Philips needed some hydration and sugar at half-time, and took off a few minutes into the second half to recover sufficiently to return into the game.  Apparently refreshed, she figured in all three of the Eagles' second half goals. 
 The second goal , another sharp rap by Salinas, came off a Phillips corner kick.  Still a bit woozy, but no less lethal, Phillips had enough  left to add the last two goals, once kicking the ball out from between the Cambridge goalie's feet, and then arcing a shot over the goalie a few minutes later. She came within a whisker of completing an all-in-one-half hat trick when she shanked an open-goal opportunity into the cheap seats.
  (Keith Wilcke of Christian Learning provided this account.) 

Boys Varsity Volleyball Championship

BIG HIT --´Jaguar Mateus DeCarvalho (4) prepares to give the ball a whack in second set. Jonatan Muñoz, International

Jaguars emerge victorious over Griffins

In a championship match that will be remembered as one of the best played in League history, the Cooperative boys varsity volleyball team finally outlasted International in an epic, thrill-packed three-set match on the Griffins court Monday to secure its second straight title.
International took the first set 28-26, after trailing by as much as five points before tying the game at 19-19. After that the teams tied on every point until 24-24. Cooperative took the second set 25-23 in which many rallies went back and forth across the net 20 times or more with many spectacular spikes, blocks, gets, and returns often leaving the small but enthusiastic crowd wondering what a team had to do to win a point.
The third set was almost an anti-climax in that Cooperative was able to take the lead and hold it after the teams tied at 5-5, gradually widening the margin until they won 15-10.

HAIL TO THE CHAMPIONS -- Jaguars take possession 

of their second consecutive League trophy. 

 Jonatan Muñoz, International 

International knew from the beginning that they were going have take chances to defeat the bigger and well disciplined Cooperative team that preferred to wait for its opponents to make an error. The Jaguars fearless leader Juan Alfredo Abuawad  was well known for never hitting a spike unless he felt it was a sure thing, often preferring to dink his returns to a strategic spot, and never failing to get the ball back.
 However, initially it seemed as if the Griffins might have opened one too many cans of energy drink as the first three points were spikes that went long. Cooperative stretched that 3-0 lead out to 7-1 before the Griffins began to hit with more precision and cut into the Jaguar lead.
 Both teams adopted a more risk-averse stye, while concentrating on flawless receptions, and intrepid retrievals. The Griffins then began to get some effective spikes by Francisco Gonzalez, Andre MacLean, and Juan Narvaez. (It was not enough in this game to just hist the ball hard and straight. An astounding number of attempted kills were blocked, sometimes double-blocked.)
 At this point either team could have won the set, but it was International that did, 28-26, with the winning point coming on a hotly disputed out-of-bounds call.
 In the second set Cooperative again jumped out to an early three-point advantage, but the Griffins came back much more quickly to tie the game at 7-all, and then take a narrow lead with some brilliant spiking and blocking.
 Cooperative got the lead back 9-8 when Juan Alfredo Abuawad's teammates set him up for three consecutive full-force smashes. The first two were blocked; the third was the charm.
 As the two teams battled on trading points it became increasingly clear how important it was for Cooperative to have Mateus de Carvalho, who had hurt his ankle earlier in the season, back in the line-up. As he threaded in several spikes for points, and then put Cooperative up 17-15 with a nifty little tap to an undefended spot. He followed those moves up with two intimidating blocks.
 But the score evened out again at 19-19 and 22-22.
 But International's cause was damaged in this end game by three bad serves and an out of bounds spike as the Griffins seemed almost to be trying too hard. A mis-handled reception let Cooperative take the game, and even the set count at 1-1.
 International did not let Cooperative jump ahead in the third set as the Jaguars had in the first two, using two big blocks to check the Jaguar juggernaut. The teams tied at 5-5, but the Cooperative started to edge ahead, first with two big spikes by DeCarvalho that moved the count to 7-5. A ball hit long, and a bad serve by International helped widen the Jaguar advantage to 12-8. Cooperative held that advantage though to the end, winning 15-10 when Juan Alfredo Abuawad uncorked one final magnificent spike to wrap it up
 Playing for the victorious Jaguars were Juan Alfredo Abuawad and Josue Abuawad, Juan Pablo Roda, Jorge Melgar, Jorge Zankis, De Carvalho, Alejandro Rosas, Rodrigo Adriazola, Jose Mozza, and Eduardo Ribera.
 For International: Federico Matus, MacLean, Eric Takayama, Narvaez,Santiago Maldonado, Gonzalez, Christian Maldonado, and Daniel Roempler.
.

Girls Varsity Volleyball Championship

DELICATE DUEL -- Griffin Noelia Quinteros and Jaguar Sofia Sotelo seem to have an equal chance at the ball when the score was 16-16 in the first set. Jonatan Muñoz, International

Jaguars' relentless attack beats Griffins


 Playing what seemed to be almost error-free volleyball, the Cooperative girls varsity volleyball team defeated International in two hard-fought sets Monday in the Griffins gym to gain its second consecutive League title.
 The opening set began, and indeed continued for quite a while, as a very close affair, with long rallies marked by great offensive and defensive efforts. However, after a tie at 16-16 the Jaguars played the rest of the set without making an unforced error. International made only a few, but they made the difference as Cooperative prevailed 25-18.
 International looked as if it were on the comeback trail at the start of the second set as the Griffins jumped out to a 5-1 lead, and eventually worked to a 12-4 advantage. The Jaguars rallied at this point and crept back up until they had tied the score at 15-15. The two teams then played in lockstep, tying repeatedly until 22-22, at which point the Jaguars put together a three-point surge to take the set 25-22 and win the match.
 The victory was a tribute, or at least a vindication, of the disciplined style of play and coaching employed by Aleksandar Mahdjik, the Yul Brynner-esque Serbian expat who coaches the Cooperative team.
 When International beat his team in their second meeting of the season he freely conceded that the Griffins had raised the level of play way above where it had been in the first contest, which Cooperative had won. "They were better than us," he freely conceded, indicating he intended for his team to move up to or above that level for the finals. 
  But for the start of the game "Madja," as he is known, had three of his usual starters on the bench for disciplinary infractions, either forgetting a uniform shirt, or engaging in undefined acts of insubordination. This was surprising for this high-stakes occasion, but was even more amazing is that the substitutes played with the same error-free precision that would be the method by which the Jaguars would obtain victory.
 The Jaguars big players -- chiefly Carla Limpias and Ana Paula Peredo -- were capable of hitting hard, cross-court shots when the chance presented itself, but the priority clearly was to get the ball back at all costs.  The result was very few kills for points, but some amazing saves of balls hit off the net or retrieved from out-of-bounds. 
 After the score reached 16-16 the pressure started to wear down the Griffins, who made several unforced errors. The Jaguars outlasted the Griffins in a seemingly endless rally to move the score to 22-18. The final stroke was an attempted kill by Griffin Laura Maragaño that sailed long. 
 This seemed to deflate the Griffins, and the Jaguars took three quick points to win 25-18, and then 
  But International was by no means finished. They picked up the quality of their play at the beginning of the second set, and now it was Cooperative that was making the communication miscues. Even though the Cooperative "first team" was now out on the floor, the Griffins were able to move out to a 13-5 lead and seemed to be on a trajectory to force a third set.
The tide started to shift when Maria Jose Viacava went back to the service line at 13-5, and didn't leave it until the score was 13-10. But it wasn't all serves. Nabila Faran figured in several points as she demonstrated her forecourt dexterity, alternately blocking, setting up, and smashing. Peredo hit a beautifully placed smash to a undefended far corner.
 Cooperative now seemed to have regained momentum, and a brilliant back-handed spike smacked right down the line by Aldana Roda with her back to the net seemed to buoy their spirits even further. The Jaguars overtook the Griffins at 17-17. The Griffins were able to get back in front 22-21, but then the machine-like precision of the Jaguars produced a four-point run that gave the Jaguars the set and the match.
 In a lovely closing touch, after the traditional game-ending handshake the two teams applauded one another.
 The line-up for Cooperative was Maria Velasco, Kamiya Megumi, Nabila Faran, Audrey Saucedo, Peredo, Susana Zankiz, Sofia Sotelo, Luciana Adriazola, Viacava, Roda, Limpias, and Flavia Cortes.
 For International; Ciara Harriague, Pamela Suarez, Inez Fernandez, Diana Melgar,Noelia Quinteros, Adriana Ocampo, Stephanie Gioto, Victoria Gutierrez, Laura Maragaño, and Flavia Nostas.  

VICTORY SMILES

   

Girls Varsity Volleyball Consolation Game

Lady Knights overpower Eagles 

By Sung Eun Song
International School

The Cambridge varsity girls volleyball team scored a landslide victory over Christian Learning, winning third place. The Lady Knights won in straight sets by 25-9, 25-19. The game was played at International gym Monday.

  From the beginning, Cambridge girls prevailed the overall match. They started their scoring parade folowing the lead of Knight captain Ana Saavedra  Banzer, who has been a star in the League  since her freshman year.  Her steady attacks broke down the Eagles’ resistance, giving Cambridge several points and lifting the team's spirit.

 The other player who ontributed most to the first set victory of Cambridge was Mariana Escaño, whose serves were virtually unblockable. Few Eagles were able to return her serves,  and most of led directly to scores for Cambridge. The Lady Knights scored 12 consecutive points while Escano was serving, and coasted to victory by a wide margin, 25-9.

 The Cambridge girls dominated the second set as well. Valeria LaTorrse was one of the outstanding players for Cambridge, consistently hitting spikes that were accurate and strong. The Eagles’ best offensive player,  Gaby Tang, seemed as if she didn’t bring up her best stuff with her this time. And as Eagles have no other consistent big hitter, it was hard for them to score against over Cambridge. The second set ended with Cambridge ahead 25-29, giving them the set, the match and third place. 

What mattered of today’s game was the attitude of two teams toward the game. As ‘playing to win’ and ‘playing not to lose’ are apparently different, both teams needed more enthusiasm and desire. Especially in today’s game, Christian Learning girls seemed like they need more spirit.

One more thing to notice is that most of the Little Knights except Diana and Valeria are leaving next year. This is kind of big loss for Cambridge, but at the same time, it is a great opportunity to find out and trained new young athletics. New features of Cambridge JV girls volleyball team next year is looked for.

Boys Varsity Volleyball Consolation Game

Eagle firepower subdues Knights

By Sung Eun Song
International School

Christian Learning boys varsity volleyball team triumphed over the Cambridge Knights through excellent team work and skilled techniques.  Christian Learning boys won both sets by wide margins, 25-14 in the first set and 25-10 in the second, assuring them of third place in varsity boys volleyball in 2010. The game was played in International gym Monday.

 From the beginning of the first set the Eagles dominated play with their three outstanding players -- Jesse Hallock, Conroy Janzen and Caleb Ropp taking turns scoring points.  Hallock, a captain of Eagles, capitalized on the great opportunities afforded him by artful set-ups and never missed them. He was highly skilled at spotting empty spots of the Cambridge side, and spiking accurately to them.

 Janzen was another outstanding spiker. He jumped right in front of the net and spiked the ball emphatically, which reminded one of boxer Muhammad Ali's phrase "to float like a butterfly and sting like a bee." 

. Ropp was a great server whose serves were so strong that few Knights were able to return them. He jumped up tom launch his serves, and that extra height and m momentum seemed to make them unblockable. 

  There were few standouts on the Cambridge side.  The only player who could put the ball away for the Knights was Francis Subirana, but it was too much for him to try to counter the Eagles' well-organized team play by himself. Furthermore, the Knights gave several points to the Eagles by being in the wrong position, which showed a lack of concentration and less organized teamwork. The Eagles won the opening set 25-13.

 And from there it just got worse for the Knights, who ceased to put up much of a fight. Play became sloppy with many of the points be decided on the serve, with either the Knights missing or the Eagles hitting unreturnable ones.     

  In short order -- about 14 minutes -- the set and match were over.

 However, there was one breathtaking moment performed by the Cambridge boys. One of the Eagles hit the ball hard and the ball slipped off to the Cambridge side touching the net. The ball was almost going to hit the ground for a sure Eagle point, but Subirana, in a desperation play, kept the ball alive by kicking it high. It came down on the opposite side of the Cambridge court, where Alvaro Lopez set the ball up to Michael Duera in the middle.  Dueri hit a slashing cross-court return gaining the point for the Knights, and winning an admiring round of sustained applause from supports of both teams. 

  However, that was the last big play for the Knights, and the set ended 25-10, giving the Eagles the third place title in boys volleyball.

Boys Varsity Soccer Semifinals

BIG PLAY -- Eagle Andre Larsen (not shown) has just out-fought (and flattened) most of the Jaguar defense, and has rocketed in a crossing pass that teammate Trevor Reed (14, center) had a chance to head into an empty net, but couldn't quite get his head back far enough. A goal would have put the Eagles ahead 3-2. Katarina Holland, Christian Learning

Jaguars overcome Eagles, 5-2

 The Cooperative boys varsity soccer team won its berth in the championship game with a 5-2 victory over Christian Learning on the Jaguars field Thursday afternoon.

 Freshman Flash Santiago Paz accounted for four of the Jaguar goals, with Juan Carlos Laguna adding the fifth.  Andre Larsen and Caleb Ropp scored for the Eagles.

BLOCK THAT KICK -- Eagle Trevor Reed (14)
tries to get to the ball in front of the Jaguar
goal. Jaguar Lenardo Landivar (13) seeks to
prevent him from doing so Katarina Holland, Christian Learning

  On a cool, smoky afternoon the two teams played one of the more entertaining games of the season, though marred with disputes over missed penalty calls. Christian Learning actually seemed to have the momentum on its side at the beginning of the game, with Cooperative appearing a little under the weather. Part of the reason may have been that the Jaguars were playing withoutb their top scorer, Jose Manuel Vasquez, who was red- carded in the last game of the regular season, which was against Christian Learning. 

Nonetheless the Jaguars were able to score first on a  missed trap at midfield which led to a quick strike up the middle by Paz. 

 The Eagles' Andre Larsen answered about ten minutes later with a long ball he got to bounce high over the goalie, and then in the ensuing scramble Larsen and/or a defender got the ball into the net, tying the score at 1-1. 

 First half play continued to flow back and forth with the Jaguars getting the better of the chances and hitting the goalposts twice. But there was plenty to excite the Eagle fans as well, mostly provided by Larsen's further exploits around the Jaguar goal.

  The undefeated Jaguars thus found themselves in a 1-1 tie at halftime in the semifinal battle for the right to play for the championship trophy, against a team that hadn't won all season. Would this be another Cinderella story, reminiscent of last year's championship in which the mighty Jaguars had lost to Cambridge, a team that hadn't won a game in the regular season?

  Play moved smartly up and down the field in the second half, but with the Jaguars adding a bit more pressure, and seemingly becoming a bit more desperate to drive the pesky Eagles back to their roost.  Christian Learning almost took the lead (unthinkable!) when Larsen out dueled the Jaguar goalie for the ball on the left side of the goal box and crossed it, but Trevor Reed's header toward the empty goal went awry and the score remained tied. 

 Cooperative answered with a quick run down the right side and a pass from the goal line back to Paz who slipped the ball in under diving goalie Wesley Ordonez to give the Jaguars a 2-1 lead. 

 But the Eagles weren't finished.  An Eagle corner kick gave Ropp a chance at a header, and he buried the ball in the far left corner of the Jaguar net to tie the game up at 2-2.  

  Cooperative then had a near miss on a free kick from just outside the penalty box. In a well executed piece of trickery the the first Jaguar ran over the ball, after which a second player slammed a wicked, left-footed, inside-out hooking shot that skidded off the top of the crossbar. (So far the Jaguars were being victimized in part by their own low goal.)

  But then the wheels finally came off. Twice Eagle players ended up on the ground and their fans screamed for a foul call, but didn't get it. (Two yellow cards were issued to Jaguar players at other points in then game.) 

 In the ensuing play after the second collision Paz got loose on a semi-breakaway and tucked the ball into the far right corner of the net. 

   The lift clearly seemed to go out from under the Eagles' wings at this point, and in short order the Jaguars  added two more goals -- Paz' fourth and Laguna's -- to finish out the scoring and the Eagle hopes.

  The final score: 5-2. The Jaguars won their ticket to the championship game with International, but the Eagles had made it clear they will be a force to be reckoned with in the consolation game against Cambridge. (Of course, Cambridge didn't have all that bad a day itself. See below.) 

   And as the Eagle players and fans dispersed into the smoky night, the cry could be heard: "Wait ´til basketball!"

   Keith Wilcke of Christian Learning provided this account.

Griffins win in  dramatic shootout

 T he International boys varsity soccer team fought its way into the championship game with a semifinal victory over Cambridge by the closest margin possible Thursday on their home field.
  The high-energy, thrill-packed regulation game ended 2-2, the same score racked up by the two teams when they met earlier in the season. The outcome was then decided by a penalty shootout that unfolded in spectacularly dramatic fashion.
  In the shoot-out five players from each team try to make a penalty shot. Cambridge goalie Jose Luis Rivera blocked the shots of the first two International shooters, while Cambridge's Alvaro Lopez and Matias Martinez made their shots, giving the Knights a 2-0 lead.
 But then it was the turn of International goalkeeper Santiago Maldonado to come up with the big plays as he blocked the next three shots by Cambridge, while his teammates made all three of theirs, giving International the win 3-2.
 Both teams dought fiercely for dominance at the start of the game, and the Griuffins had the first real chance with Jorge Harriague was founed in the penalty area. However his penalty shot went wide. Harriague atonbed form that a few inutes later when he rammed in a rebound.
  The half ended with International ahead 1-0, but not before Harriague almost engineered another goal when he took control of a kick from the Griffin goalie, dribbled the ball through the center of the field and then passed it to teammate Gary Suarez who was standing right just at the goalmouth of Cambridge. However, Suarez' short shot  missed high and to the left.

 Cambridge's best opportunities came on two consecutrive corner kicks late in the half, but the first was mis-kicked, and the second successfully cleared by Griffin defenders. 

  Cambridge retaliated at the beginning of the second half with a similarly opportunistic goal by Matheo Asturizaga.

  The Griffins then retook the lead when Andres Estennsoro, swooping in from the left hand side accompanied by several several teammates in what looked like an American football "power sweep," banged the ball into the right hand corner of the goal.
  The Knights evened things up with a surgically precise free kick by Marlon Castillo. Castillo, shooting from about 30 meters out on the right-hand side of the goal noted that Maldonado had lined up on the left-hand side of the goal, and unleashed a scorching, curving drive aimed exactly at the upper right-hand corner of the coal -- and hit it. Maldonado got  a hand on the ball, knocking it up to the crossbar, but it bounced down into the goal.
 The game was full of other thrilling moments, as the action moved up and down the field at an amazing pace in a style of play that has been characteristic of the storied competition between the two schools. .
  For a while in then second half Knight forward Matias Martinez seemed to have charge of the action, winning a series of footraces to balls going into the corner, then firing centering passes across the mouth of the goal, but his teammates kept narrowly missing connections.
 A hard shot by a Griffin bounced loose from goalie Rivera's grasp, but no one was there to knock it in.
 And on it went into the smoky gloaming, with both sides making legitimate threats without finding an opening.
  The loss means that Interrnational will get another shot at beating Cooperative, with whom they tied 0-0 in their previous meeting this year, in the championship game next week. It also meant that Cambridge will not get a chance to defend the title they won in Cinderella fashion last year. The Knights will play a resurgent Christian Learning team in the consolation game. Cambridge has beaten the Eagles twice this year, but the games were extremely close, being decided by a single goal in both cases.
 (Sung Eun Song of International contributed to this report.) 

JV Boys Soccer Semifinals

Jr. Jags come from behind to win
By Sung Eun Song
International School
  

The Cooperative junior varsity boys soccer team scored a 2-1  victory over International on the International field Thursday. The game was great, but must have been hard on the players because of the smoky weather.

  Jose Eduardo Coloma opened the scoring for International about seven minutes into the game when he scored on a free kick awarded because Jaguar Sebastian Zankis was called for interference just outside the middle of the penalty box. Coloma unleashed a shot that beat Jaguar goalie Ian Peña to the far side of the goal.

  International got another great chance near the end of the first half when a shot from the right hand side of the net got past Jaguar defender Richard Salvatierra and curled across the front of the goal. Griffin Jorge Capobianco slammed the ball hard, but the Jaguar goalie made the save.  

 Jaguar Laurencio Monasterio had an excellent chance to even the score at the start of the second half, and he didn’t miss. He dribbled the ball through the left corner of the field and shot accurately into the net. 

  it. (10, Cooperative) dribbled the ball along the left corner side and shoot it accurately into the net.  

The second half was full of excellent opportunities for both teams. Each team had several chances, but neither team seemed able to put the ball into the net. Cooperative had actually had its best chance when ReinaldoChavez headed the ball toward an open goal. However, the ball bounced down to the ground and was blocked by the International goalie Juan Pablo Velasco. 

 During the second half, both Cooperative and International teams picked up a yellow card with the opponents being awarded a free kick from fairly short range, but neither resulted in a goal. The game looked like it would end in a tie, but the Jaguars in the person of Reinaldo Chavez got one last chance to win it, and made good on it, atoning for his earlier miss. 

  The win gives Cooperative a ticket to the Big Dance -- the championship game against Cambridge next week. International will play Christian Learning for third place in the consolation game.  

   It was (3) who pulled Jaguars to within a single goal 2-1. After that, Cooperative had another chance but the shot hit the crossbar and bounced off. International also kept threatening, but Cooperative made the necessary saves. (15) and (16) were the outstanding defenders of Cooperative.

The game ended with the little Jaguars ahead 2-1.

 The Cooperative junior varsity boys soccer team tallied twice in the second half to manufacture a 2-1 win over International on the International field Thursday afternoon.
 Jose Eduardo Coloma scored to give the Griffins a 1-0 halftime lead.
 Jaguars Reinaldo Chavez and Agustin Velasquez scored in the second half to give Cooperative the win and the opportunity to face Cambridge in  the championship game next week. .

Cambridge JV beats Eagles 5-0

 The Cambridge junior varsity boys soccer team burst its way into the championship game with a 5-0 win over Christian Learning in the semifinal game played on the Cooperative field Thursday afternoon.
 The Knight scoring was spread among five players -- Percy Vidal, Mirko Sempertegui, Gabriel Alonso, Kevin Pulis and Leonardo Arges.
 The plot of the game was quite predictable, following the story line of the two previous meetings between the two teams. Cambridge's superior size and skill enabled them to more or less toy with the relatively puny Eagles. Mercifully the referee seemed to call the game a few minutes early, which may have helped keep the score down. The Cambridge goalie only had to make one save that observers could recall afterwards.
 Cambridge led 2-0 at the half.
 Cambridge, which finished first in the regular season by a tiny margin will now face Cooperative in the championship game. The two teams tied 1-1 in both of their prior meetings this year, with each team winning one of the shootouts, in each case by a single goal. Christian Learning will play International in the consolation game.
  (Keith Wilcke of Christian Learning provided this account.)   

Varsity Girls Volleyball Semifinals

Jaguar girls too strong for Knights

 The Cooperative girls varsity volleyball team scored a straight sets victory over Cambridge on their home court Thursday.
  Cooperative prevailed in the first set 25-11, and the second 25-14. The match was marked by long rallies, but except for a brief period at the beginning of the second set when the Lady Knights took a 4-1 lead, the Jaguars were relentless in their attack, playing error-free volleyball for extended stretches.
 Sofia Sotelo was an all-around star for the Jaguars, and Carla Limpias was also brilliant both at the front line and in the backcourt. Limpias, who was celebrating her birthday, broke the second set open with her swift and accurate serves. The score went from 11-8 to 19-8 during her service.
 Cambridge had lost twice to Cooperative in their previous meetings, but just didn't have the necessary precision to stay with the Jaguars in this match.
 The Jaguars will now play International in the championship game. The Knights will play Christian Learning for third place.      

Griffins victorious over Eagles 2-0

By Sung Eun Song
International School
 The International girls varsity volleyball team won their semifinal match against Christian Learning in straight sets on their home court Thursday, setting up a championship contest between the Griffins and Cooperative next week. The Griffins took the first set 25-12, and the second 25-19.
 The International JV girls volleyball team easily beat Christian Learning in straight sets Thursday at their home gym. They won the first set 25-12, and then took the second set 25-19.

  The Griffins were in command of the match from the beginning, moving out to a 6-0 lead in the first set on the strong serving of Laura Maragaño.  Her hard-hit serves were exactly pointed at the empty spot, letting nobody handle them. The Little Griffins then widened the score up to 14-6, and, at the end, 25-12.

  International continued its dominance in the second set as well. They never gave the Eagles a chance to catch up, maintaining the big margin from the beginning to the end of the game. The best Eagles players were Gaby Tang and Natalia Egüez, who continuously attacked and also defended well, but the Griffin advantage in consistency was too big to overcome. The Griffins won the second set 25-19.

JV Girls Volleyball Semifinals

Griffinettes defeat Little Knights

 The International girls junior varsity volleyball team won their semifinal match against Cambridge in straight sets on their home court Thursday, setting up a championship contest between the Griffins and Cooperative next week. The Griffins took the first set 25-9, and the second 25-13.

 The first set started with Chiara  Harriague’s strong serving. Harriague seemed like she was born to be a volleyball player, which she may have been. Her mother in International coach Eli Vilar. . Despite being only a seventh grader, she was the outstanding player in the game with her excellent passing and attacking skills.

 Another outstanding player was of  Nicole Fermin of Cambridge. Fermin never missed the chances she was given. Whenever she got a chance to attack, she spiked the ball accurately to the International court’s empty spots, scoring several points for Cambridge. However, Cambridge couldn’t beat International girls’ perfect teamwork, and the first set ended by 25-9..

 The second set was more competitive. Both teams tried their best, but it was Griffin girls who prevailed the overall game. Fabiana Zelada and Renata. Maggi of International made the most of their many great scoring chances.  Their team play was outstanding when Maggi dived for the ball that Paula Oliva of Cambridge strongly spiked, and set up  Zelda to re-spike and score. The Griffin girls again outlasted Cambridge, winning the second set 25-13

The International junior varsity girls volleyball team thereby won its place in the championship game against Cooperative next Thursday. 

 The Griffins won the first set 25-9, and the second 25-13.

Jaguars conquer Little Eagles 

 The Cooperative junior varsity girls volleyball team won its semifinal match against Christian Learning in straight sets Thursday in the Cooperative gym.
 Cooperative won the the opening set 25-7 and the second set 25-17.

Girls Varsity Soccer Semifinals

FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE -- Eagle goalie Sharon Gabler tries to save ball at same moment defender Tabitha Malloy tries to clear it. The ball popped loose and was tapped in for Griffins' first goal. Jonatan Muñoz, International

Griffins win 5-0 win over Eagles

By Trevor Reed
Christian Learning

The International girls varsity soccer team triumphed over the Christian Learning 5-0 on Tuesday at the Griffins' home field in a game that was much closer than the score suggests.

 Both teams were focused on offense starting off, and both goalies had to work hard in order to keep the other team scoreless. There were numerous corner kicks for both teams, but neither team was able to convert their corners into goals until about halfway through the first half, when the Griffins finally gained a lead.

 The Eagle goalie had just saved a shot on goal, but collided with a teammate jarring the ball loose. Griffin Maria Isabel Barrenechea was there to put her foot on it, sending the ball slowly rolling into the back of the net before anyone to knock it away.

The Eagles had their own opportunities to even the score, and they seemed to become even more determined to score with each missed chance. Eagle Mariela Salinas had a chance on a centering pass, but was unable to connect.There was another close call after good passing between Salinas, Abby Phillips, and seventh-grader Emily Ordoñez, but once again the Eagles failed to score.

 Both teams used a strategy of kicking long passes just past the opposing defense in hopes that their own players could outrun the defenders and catch up with the ball, but this was not successful.

 Then, as the first half was drawing to a close and everything seemed to be calming down, the Griffins struck
again. The ball was crossed to the center from the corner of the field, and somehow Griffin seventh grader Fabiana Zelada headed it in to score an unexpected and shocking goal.

 The Griffins finished the first half with a 2-0 lead, despite the support of a large cheering section for the Eagles.
 In the second half, the Griffins focused a bit more on defense to try to keep their lead. The Eagles still focused on offense, and they nearly scored multiple times.

 In one particular play, a pass right in front of the goal passed by three different Eagle players who were unable to connect with it to put it in the goal. 

 The Griffins at this point returned to the offense, passing the ball up the field before Matilde Gamarra took a shot from the edge of the penalty box. The shot went in, bringing the score to 3-0.

 The Eagles had two more near-misses right in front of the opposing goal before the Griffins were able to recover possession again.  The Griffins scored on a center that passed through the Eagle goalie's fingertips and was tapped in by Griffin Laura Maragaño, who was standing behind her.

 The Eagles, now desperate for a goal, nearly scored after the Griffin goalie mishandled a shot, but the ball was cleared out of the penalty box. The Griffins scored a fifth goal near the end of the game with a shot by Maria Victoria Gutierrez into the right side of the net. .

The outcome was a surprise in that the Eagles had won 1-0 in the last encounter between these two teams.

The win sets up an exciting final game between the Griffins and Jaguars. TheGriffins have lost twice to the Jaguars this season, but came close to winning the first game 2-1. The Griffins have definitely
improved since their last game against the Eagles, but the real question is whether or not they have improved enough to beat a Jaguar team that is notorious for dominating girls soccer, and has won every girls varsity championship since the start of the league.

 Theanswer will come next Tuesday as those two teams face off in one of the most anticipated games of recent years.

SHOCKER -- The second Griffin goal came during a melee in front of the Eagle goal when  little Fabiana Zelada (shown standing innocently next to Eagle defender on left) headed a crossing pass into the goal. The Eagles were stunned. Jonatan Muñoz, International. 

_____________________

Knights forfeit to undefeated Jaguars

Cambridge was unable to field a girls varsity soccer team Tuesday and so forfeited the match to Cooperative.
Discretion may have been the better part of valor for the Lady Knights, who had lost their two previous meeting with Cooperative by a combined score of 16-1. The stage is now set for International to take the final shot of the season at Cooperative, which has been undefeated and untied since 2008. No one can remember the Jaguar girls losing a soccer game, and it is possible that they have not lost a game in League history going back to 2005. Records are being checked. They were tied twice in 2008.
While the forfeit was unfortunate, especially for the Cooperative girls who were ready to play, but it's worth noting that this was the first, and probably last, forfeit this season, a welcome improvement from past years.