United Quest Blue
'85 Athena
- 1999 MNYSA Classic -
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United Quest Blue |
This page was last updated on November 16, 1999
1999 MNYSA Classic Tournament
The team made its first "real game" U-14 appearance in the Metro North Classic during the last weekend in August. We played in the U-14 Athena "A" division. The division had six teams divided into two groups. Our group included us, the IAYMCA Eagles and the MNYSA Metros Navy.
The format for each group was "round robin" (each teams plays the other two teams), plus an extra "out of group" game to guarantee three opening round games. The two group winners would play for the championship. Group standings were based on the tournament point system: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 1 point for each goal scored (up to 3 per game), and 1 point for a shutout.
On Saturday, we won our first game, then lost our second game to an "A" level opponent. (We're a newly promoted "B" level team.) We went into our Sunday morning game with a slim chance at making the championship: we'd need to win by shutout, and hope another team lost by shutout. But we lost 5-1 and were eliminated. So our quest for our first tournament championship continues. But we'll get another chance next weekend in The Atlanta Cup!
We thank the Metro North Youth Soccer Association for hosting the well-run tournament.
Here are our game-by-game results. You can click on a result to see a detailed game report.
| Date | Time |
Location | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, Aug. 28 | 8:00 AM |
Metro North 5 | MNYSA Metros White | Won 2-1 |
| Saturday, Aug. 28 | 1:00 PM |
Metro North 1 | MNYSA Metros Navy | Lost 3-1 |
| Sunday, Aug. 29 | 10:30 AM |
Metro North 5 | IAYMCA Eagles (H) | Lost 5-1 |
Game 1: Won 2-1 vs. MNYSA Metros White
The Metros White are Metro North's #2 U-14 team. They were formerly known as Cobb Union White. The Quest played them twice during the U-12 season and three times during the U-13 season. There were three ties and two 1-goal losses, so the Quest was looking for their first-ever win against this team.
The Quest got off to an excellent start and kept possession in the Metros end for most of the first half. The Quest were unable to spring a player for an open shot, though. 13 minutes into the game, Rachael won a ball on the left side and fed to Elisa in the center. Elisa was marked tightly, so she passed to Amanda on the right. Amanda turned and fired a hard shot which was too powerful for the Metros keeper. Goal Quest and a 1-0 lead!
The Quest continued to control most of the play and halftime came with the Quest still up 1-0. Sally was in goal for the Quest in the first half, and she didn't have to make any saves.
The Metros created some chances in the second half. Jessica Borocz was making her first appearance in goal for the Quest, and she was forced into action a few times. She made an excellent sliding, blocking save to stuff a Metros forward who had received an open pass in the box. With 11 minutes left, the Metros earned a penalty kick and scored to tie the game. The Quest was controlling more of the play, but now the score didn't reflect this edge.
The Quest created some good chances in the next few minutes. Meagan beat her defender and crossed the ball across the goal mouth past the keeper, but the other Quest forwards were AWOL and a golden chance was lost. Moments later, Alex hit a free kick just outside the far post. Two Quest players were there, but neither could get a body on the ball. Another golden chance lost.
With six minutes left, the Quest finally found the net. The Quest built the ball up from the back, leading to a pass to Rachael at the center forward position. She laid the ball back for Alex, who hit one of her trademark high arcing shots over the goalie's outstretched arms and just under the post. Goal Quest and a 2-1 lead!
The Metros weren't about to fold, though, and they narrowly missed a goal moments later. A Metro player beat the Quest defense on the right side, but her shot went off the crossbar. A close call! That was their last good chance, and the Quest held on for the 2-1 win. The 2-1 win earns the Quest 5 points: 3 for the win and 2 for the goals scored.
So not only did the Quest get off to a good start in the tournament, they also posted their first-ever win against this team!
Game 2: Lost 3-1 vs. MNYSA Metros Navy
The Metros Navy are Metro North's top U-14 team. They play in the Athena "A" division. The Quest Red and White teams (United's #1 and #2 U-14 teams) have played them often over the years, but this was the Quest Blue's first-ever game against this opponent.
The Metros took immediate control of the game and kept the Quest pinned in their own end during the opening minutes. The Quest weathered the early storm, then started to gain some possession and occasionally work the ball into the Metros end of the field. During one Metro attack, the Quest wasn't able to get a strong clearance, and the ball ended up on the foot of the Metros center midfielder about 25 yards from goal. She hit a high lob shot to beat the Quest keeper and give the Metros a 1-0 lead.
During the team's most recent season (spring '99), the Quest showed a good ability to bounce back after giving up a goal. The team showed that same quality again. The Quest started creating some dangerous chances. On a few occasions, Quest players got past their defenders and were fouled, leading to Quest free kicks in the attacking zone. (One Metro defender earned a yellow card after repeated fouls from behind.) Free kicks are Alex's specialty. On one attempt, she beat the keeper with a high shot, but it hit the crossbar and bounced high into the air. Amanda was there to head the rebound, but the Metros keeper was able to recover and make the save.
Alex got another free kick attempt a few minutes later and fooled everyone with a low shot. This shot was on target and found the lower left corner of the goal to give the Quest a 1-1 tie midway through the half. The Quest kept pressure on the Metros, mostly attacking up the right side. Amanda and Asha both came close with narrow-angle shots.
The Metros had a promising attack in the last seconds of the first half, finding an open player in the center of the penalty area. But her first touch was lacking, giving the Quest an extra couple of seconds to recover and pressure the ball. The resulting shot went over the goal seconds before halftime.
The Metros regained their advantage in the second half, and had most of the play. The Quest created an occasional attack, but had nowhere near the amount of possession as the Metros. The Metros took a 2-1 lead 5 minutes into the half. They played a long ball through the defense. "Big J" came out strong from the Quest goal and blocked the original shot, but in the process, the Quest sweeper got knocked down too! The ball rebounded toward the Quest goal. A Quest defender hit it wide, but a Metro player was right there to intercept it, and she quickly shot it into the open goal.
With 9 minutes left, the Metros extended their lead to 3-1 on a corner kick from from the right side. The kick was a beautiful, driven high ball about one yard off the goal line. The Quest keeper went for it, but it just cleared her hands. A Metro player got a body on the ball as it was dropping, and she redirected it into the goal.
The Metros 3-1 win, added to their earlier 3-1 win against the IAYMCA Eagles, gives them a 2-0 record and 12 points after two games and puts them in first place in the group. The Quest's goal earned 1 point in the tournament standings, giving the Quest 6 points after two games.
Game 3: Lost 5-1 vs. IAYMCA Eagles
The Eagles are a "B" division team from Alpharetta. The teams had met once before. Back in the team's 3rd-ever game (during our U-12 "D" level days), we played the Eagles and lost 5-0, which remains the Quest's worst-ever loss. The Eagles quickly moved up to "C" level, then to "B" level in back-to-back seasons.
Going into this game, the Quest still had an outside chance to qualify for the championship game. It would take a 3-0 or better shutout win, plus the Metros Navy would have to lose by shutout against the Brookwood Steamers. But today wasn't the Quest's day.
The Eagles got off to a fast start, scoring in the 4th and 10th minutes to take an early a 2-0 lead. The Quest came back in the 25th minute with a goal by Alex (another of her long-range bombs) to narrow the Eagles lead to 2-1. The Quest was playing the Eagles on even terms during the last 15 minutes of the first half, and as halftime came, everyone expected a tight and competitive second half. But the Eagles scored early in the second half to go ahead 3-1, then scored two more to win 5-1.
Summary
The Metros Navy won our group to advance to the championship game, where they met the Brookwood Steamers. The Metros won 4-3 to claim the tournament's U-14 Athena "A" division championship.
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Created: 08/24/99 Revised: 11/16/99 |