The Sonoma County Alliance (SCA) Under 11 girls soccer team took
first place in the Mt. Diablo Summer Classic tournament last
weekend. Alliance, coached by Matt Bernard, includes players from
throughout the North Bay. SCA faced teams representing Contra
Costa, Marin County, Castro Valley, and Mt. Diablo, scoring two
shutouts, a tie, and a 3-2 victory to secure the championship.
Alliance kicked off the first day of tournament play with two
shutouts, 8-0 against the West Contra Costa Scorpions, and 3-0
against the Central Marin Magic. The SCA offense dominated the
first game, with forwards Maddy Verhunce, Kaylee Castro, Brooke
Santander, and Anabelle Musil, and midfielders Tatjana Ziemer,
Jackie Burgraf, Bella Santia, and Kayla Kimball, winning most
battles for possession. The second game relied more on defensive
efforts, with defenders Haven Kaito-Raidy, Rebecca Benjamin, Emily
Welter, Emily Panacci, and Arianna Martinez, and goalies Maddie
Thomas and Kayla Kimball, securing the shutout.
Alliance started their second day of play facing the Castro
Valley Green Machine. SCA scored twice in the first half, the first
goal scored with a rocket shot by Kimball. Later in the half,
Ziemer scored on a penalty kick, perfectly placing a shot over the
heads of defenders and the goalie. Green Machine scored two
unanswered goals in the second half, ending the game in the
disappointing tie, but still advancing the Alliance to the
championship game.
SCA girls put their efforts together in the championship game to
defeat the Mt. Diablo Storm in a game that went into double
overtime, and eventually finished in a dramatic shoot-out. The
Storm scored one goal in the first half. Despite explosive
offensive play, supported by stellar defensive play, the goal was
unanswered in the first half of the game. Alliance tied the score
in the second half when Ziemer was awarded a penalty kick, and
snuck it into the bottom corner for the goal.
Despite two hard fought overtime periods, the score remained
tied, and the game went to a shoot-out. Shooters Santander and
Welter put two points on the board for SCA, countered by only one
score for the Storm. Providing an outstanding performance, goalie
Maddie Thomas blocked the final shot for the Storm, securing the
win and the championship.
