The U13 Girls CRUSH played another nail bitter at home last weekend this time against the top rated Ankeny team in their division.  The game started fast with both teams at top speed, but it would be Ankeny to put one in the back of the net only three minutes into the game. Ankeny was awarded a free kick from a hard shoulder tackle 20 yards out.  The skilled Ankeny striker put it in the upper left corner out of reach of the CRUSH keeper Maddie Roberts. The CRUSH wasn’t phased and decided to turn up the heat. CRUSH started to challenge Ankeny on every possession and gained confidence.  With their confidence they started to attack and put shots on goal. Kaleigh Haus would be the first CRUSH player to score with a nice give and go pass inside the box delivered by Jenna Castle to set up the score.  The momentum of the game shifted back and forth with the two teams battling hard. Ankeny was awarded a free kick again 20 yards out, this time the shot was off and the score would stay even.  The CRUSH defense of Emily Loomis, Jessica Payne, Morgan Fox, Ashton Goodhue-Nolte, Lexi Lambson and Victoria Carra began frustrate the Ankeny strikers and force mistakes. And keeper Maddie grabbed every shot.  As the half progressed the momentum shifted to the CRUSH. Kaleigh would take advantage of the open middle and make a drive to the goal. With three defenders chasing her down and two of them on each shoulder she was still able to get the shot off and get it by the keeper. The half ended with the CRUSH leading 2-1.

Players of the game were Madison Staecker for successfully pulling off a Maradona 360, Taylor Whipple for one-touch passing and Ashton for aggressive defense. Outstanding game CRUSH! would aggressively attack the ball and put it in the back of the net with a left footed volley shot.  The CRUSH fans went wild with cheers surely heard by the whole county. With time still on the clock the battled continued, but the defense would burn time by forcing the ball out of bounds.  Time expired and the CRUSH walked away with a exciting 3-2 victory.  With this win the CRUSH guaranteed a winning season and are in the running for the division title.

The u10 Thunder Cats headed to Soccer South one player short and three other players weary from a game earlier in the day. They all gave 100 percent in a 5-5 draw that featured numerous attacks originating from deep in their own end and ending with shot after shot at the goal. 

After going down 2 early goals, the Thunder Cats struck back, first with a goal by Jonathan Kamerick touching in a deflected shot by Carson True, then a left-footer from the right side by True. Later, Hunter Oppedal got onto the score sheet with a nice shot coming off a two-on-one run up the middle against an overwhelmed Soccer South keeper. Hunter out-hustled the keeper to poked in a slow roller in front of the goal. Down 4-5, Jonathan would tie the game up with a shot just in side the left post when the keeper cheated to his left to cover an oncoming Carson. 

Samuel Overton displayed stellar defense, continually using his body to shield the ball and work it to the edge just in time to make a pass up the sideline to a midfielder. Zach Hoagland (pictured, right) and Wyatt Kruse (pictured, below) gutted out defensive stop after defensive stop during key moments of the game, often igniting an quick counter attack. The Carlisle side tallied several more shots on goal than the Soccer South squad, but many went wide or high during a game in which the ‘Cats came off the field completely exhausted. This week, the team will focus on finishing goals during its training sessions, and put their training to the test next weekend in a home game on the Carlisle pitch.