The Verde Valley Soccer Club’s U11 girls team is making a habit of bringing home gold medals from tournaments in its second year as a team.
The Verde Valley Fusion of the Verde Valley Soccer Club took first place in the Gilbert Arsenal Challenge Soccer Tournament at the Paloma Soccer Complex in Mesa on Oct. 6 and 7. They were undefeated throughout the tournament.
The tournament was open to all boys and girls teams in the U8 through U19 age brackets and sponsored by the Arizona Youth Soccer Association.
During the tournament, the girls played four games defeating the MSC United 6-2, Ahwatukee Red 4-0, Flagstaff United 1-0 and against Flagstaff United once more in the championship, winning 2-0.
“The girls really played in sync and were able to work together to get the wins,” Cassondra Olivarez, the team’s manager, said.
Marli Urueta and Kate Delaney were able to score goals throughout the weekend with the help from two of the team’s key defensive players, Gabby San Felice and Ginessa Altimirano.
San Felice scored a goal in the first game against MSC United, and Altimirano scored one goal in the second game against Ahwatukee Red and one in the third game against Flagstaff United.
For the full story, please see the Wednesday, Oct. 24, issue of the Cottonwood Journal Extra.
