The Carson Valley Backdraft U16 girls' soccer team took second place last weekend in Carson City at the 15th annual Comstock Shootout.
The Backdraft competed in the Cascade Division of the U16 bracket and earned a first-place seeding after the first two games by beating its opponents by a combined score of 7-0.
The first game on Saturday was against the Pleasant Hill, Calif. Hooligans. The Backdraft got a quick lead on a breakaway by Ashley Hill as she received a crossing pass from Jennifer Gorton and then beat the defenders to the goal.
A short time later Hill launched a corner kick and Jessica Vega was waiting in front of the goal and put it in. The Backdraft continued to control the game in the second half and added another goal by Hill after she received a long pass from defender Sierra Bertolone-Smith.
The second game was against the Concord, Calif. Velocity and it was played in extremely windy conditions.
Gorton scored her first goal of the season and Amanda Ferraro made a long shot after a pass from defender Shelby Eisele. Briana Rutherdale added two more goals in the second half, the first one off of a crossing pass from Gorton.
After two shutouts the Backdraft received the maximum of twenty points to earn a first-place seeding heading into the Sunday semifinals.
The Backdraft faced local rival Carson Valley Elements United in the early Sunday morning game.
The Backdraft scored first as a shot by Gorton was deflected by the goalie but Hill alertly put it right back into the net.
The Elements tied the game late in the first half as a direct kick landed in front of the goal and an Elements' player was able to punch in a ground shot through the crowd. The Backdraft responded in the second half with shot after shot, two of which hit the goal posts, but Rutherdale connected with a long shot to give the Backdraft a 2-1 lead. The defense remained solid and goalkeeper Cami Arend had two saves at the end of the game to preserve the victory and earn a spot in the championship match.
The opponent in the finals was the FCP Sting from Medford, Ore. This game was a defensive battle with back-and-forth action. The Sting broke through with a low shot between the defenders and just off of the keeper's foot. The Backdraft fought hard in the second half but a number of shots were just wide of the goal and the Sting's goalie caught all of the shots that were in her range. The Sting held on for a 1-0 victory.
The Backdraft is coached by Meghan Olsen, Michael Gibbons, Liz Baumgartner and Michelle Van Amburg. The players are ages 14 to 16 and are Arend, Kyra Barth, CJ Baumgartner, Bertolone-Smith, Jillian Brune, Melissa Chambon, Nicole Duster, Eisele, Ferraro, Natalie Freitas, Gorton, Hill, Marissa Menicucci, Becca Neuffer, Sarah Owens, Adriana Romanowitz, Rutherdale and Vega.
