In their first tournament outing of the season in their first season playing as CVU Inferno, the U11 girls took home finalist medals from the FC Irvine Showcase Tournament.

In a pool of 5 teams the first match was against Wolfpack. After a tough first half the score was 0:0, but in the second half the Wolfpack came out strong and the final score was 0:4 to the team that would ultimately take home the first place medals. The second game on Saturday was against the Wolves and now CVU started to really bring their game together. Final score 1:0 to CVU. On Sunday morning the girls first met Ladera United and again chalked up a 1:0 win. Going into the final game we knew that we were close to sealing our second place finish. The girls turned up the heat against Summer Heat and finished with a resounding 4:1 victory.

Our game plan was to bring to the tournament fields the lessons that the girls have been working on at the practice field and in this they were hugely successful. With each game played the Inferno looked stronger and stronger.

A great weekend of soccer and a great experience for the team!

On Sunday April 6th Inferno make the trek once more to the Kern County Soccer complex in Bakersfield. This time the occasion was the California State Championships. This tournament was the culmination of many long hours spent on the practice field and weekends spent at tournaments across the Southland. In the immediate run up to the big day Inferno scrimmaged a local club team and one of the best local AYSO all-star teams; the girls were both motivated and prepared, but of course we knew the other teams that made to State would be too.

The first game on Sunday morning was at 9:00am against Pasadena. Pasadena were a fast and talented soccer team. They scored first and had Inferno on their heels for most of the first half which ended with Inferno trailing by 1:3. The second half looked much like the first with both teams playing hard. More goals came for both sides and with a couple of minutes to go the scoreline was 3:4. In the last two minutes the ball was loose in the Pasadena box, shot after shot was blocked and it seemed inevitable that the ball must go in the net but finally Pasadena cleared it. After a last minute breakaway and goal the final score was 3:5. This loss meant that our next game would be for 3rd or 4th place.

Our second game was against Covina. Although the first loss had been a tough one the girls rallied before the game and were set on coming home with at least one win under their belts. Covina however seemed to have the same thought. Although both Pasadena and Covina were both tough opponents their styles of play were very different. Pasadena played a good passing game and used the width of the field well. Covina were tough, played one to one, and shot from far out. The first half was pretty evenly matched although Covina's style of play was clearly impacting Inferno's game; halftime score 1:1. In the second half however our girls got into their groove, scored one more great goal and played strong defense. Final score 2:1 Inferno.

So Inferno took home 3rd place medals from the California State Championship; an outstanding achievement!

Over the course of a great weekend of soccer at the Arroyo Vista fields in Moorpark the Inferno girls chalked up another resounding tournament win bringing home first place trophies from the Pot O'Gold.

Going into the competition the Inferno squad was depleted. Hanna was out for two weeks on doctors orders and both Katie and Annie had been out of school almost the entire week with flu. However both Katie and Annie were able to play and even Hanna was there to support her team through all four games.

Our pool featured two teams we had met in competition before, Quartz Hill and Castaic, and one from a typically tough region, Diamond Bar. First up on Saturday was Castaic, a tough game in which the girls found themselves down 0:1 at the half. However the second half was all Inferno magic and they ended the game with a 3:1 victory. Our second Saturday game was against Quartz Hill, the team that we had lost to in the Panther Shootout and tied at the Riverside Locomotion. Our Riverside matchup against QH showed that the Inferno girls had evolved into a talented and cohesive soccer team and this time out the game was Inferno's; final score 2:0.

On Sunday morning Inferno lead the pool after two games and was ahead of Diamond Bar by 1 point. A tie or a win was needed to move on to the Championship final. This game was probably a new high point for Inferno as they showed what great soccer was all about; strong defense, control of the midfield, and the ability to play possession soccer up front, were hallmarks of the game; at the final whistle the score was 5:1 against a very talented Diamond Bar team.

In the Championship final Inferno met with an unknown quantity, Beverly Hills. Although the Beverly Hills team were talented and motivated the game was all Inferno, score 3:0. Showing that hard work at practice and on the field of play makes a difference, Inferno once again took home the first place trophies.

The Inferno girls made the long trek to Bakersfield on the first weekend of March to compete against the best teams from AYSO Section 10. Going into this we knew that we would face tough competition but nothing could prepare us for the excitement and thrills that our weekend provided!

Our tournament pool play on Saturday kicked off at 8:00am against a very strong team from Valencia. We knew already that this team must be good as we had previously played other teams from this area who had not made it to the section playoffs. The Valencia team were talented and aggressive and by the half time whistle Inferno were trailing by 0:2. Little did we know that this would be the pattern of our tournament. In the second half Inferno played well but even though we had lots of shots on goal nothing was going in. The turning point in the game was one hard shot on goal, although the Valencia keeper managed to control it she stepped over the goal line with the ball. The AR made a great call and the score was 1:2. From that point on a rejuvinated Inferno never looked back and in the end chalked up a 3:2 win.

Our second game against Paso Robles started off looking just like the one before. Paso Robles scored first but, this time, by the half we had leveled the score to 1:1. Paso Robles came at us again and by the 3rd quarter were were again facing a deficit, now 2:3. In the final quarter Inferno turned up the heat bringing us to 3:3 and then with just seconds to go finished superbly from a corner kick to win by a final score of 4:3. The excitement on the field and on our sideline hit a new high point.

Going into our third pool game against Camarillo we knew that only a win or a tie would take us to the championship round. Camarillo were big and strong but ultimately no match for the Inferno girls on a mission. Final score 2:0.

The skies on the championship morning were blue; some of the Inferno girls were a bit black & blue, but our spirits were high knowing that we were already one of the four best teams in Section 10. On points from the pool round we were seeded 3rd which set us against Canyon Country, this would turn out to be our toughest test of the tournment. The Canyon Country team were in many ways like Inferno; every player on the team was strong and talented, and on the field they played smart, aggressive soccer. Throughout the game Canyon Country excelled in the center of the field winning more loose balls than Inferno. The Inferno defense, though was playing their 'A' game, and our keepers were on form. By the fourth quarter with the score still at 0:0 it was beginnning to look like we were going to face our first ever period of extra time. And then with about 8 minutes on the clock Canyon Country constructed a great play, beating our defense and leaving our keeper with no chance; 0:1, we were trailing again. 3 minutes on the clock, we pulled Katie from defense to forward and our keeper out of goal onto the field. 2 minutes to go and our extra numbers on attack were pressuring the Canyon Country defense, but with our keeper out and our defensive third empty it was make or break. A minute to go and a poor clearance by Canyon Country landed at Katie's feet and then from more than 18 yards out her shot evaded everyone to land in the net; 1:1, the final whistle, and into extra time! Extra time looked much like regular time, the game was fast paced and flowed from one end of the field to the other, this was great soccer. 10 minutes felt like 2, and we went into penalties kicks to decide the game. The tension on the sideline was incredible. 5 kicks each and these two teams still could not be split apart. Each shot was elation or heartbreak. Then on the seventh kick Kaitlin rocketed the ball over the Canyon Country keepers head into the net, it was now all up to Canyon Country. The shot was good on the ground towards the corner, but the pace was lacking and Sarah just got a touch to it and turned the ball outside the post! The team could hardly believe it and the sideline went wild. Inferno was in the final.

In the Championship game Inferno faced Visalia. Contrary to our pattern thus far Inferno scored first. Maybe we didn't need to come from behind in this one? But less than 30 seconds later Inferno was caught with their guard down and the score was level again. Back to work, the girls gritted their teeth and redoubled their efforts. In the end it was tenacity and stamina that won out for Inferno. Final score 4:1 for the Champions of Section 10 and a well desevered place in the California State Championships.

The Inferno cheer says it all... "you've got to want it to win it, but we want it more".

In the Area 10E All-Star playoffs Inferno met teams from Newbury Park, Moorpark, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, and Malibu. Over the course of 6 weekends (extended because of rain) Inferno played a total of 12 games and turned in 12 straight wins to take the Area 10E Championship and the honor of representing the Area in upcoming Section playoffs. In an impressive display of offesive talent and defensive strength the girls scored 48 goals and conceded only 5 during the playoff tournament.

The Championship match was againt a strong Moorpark team who had fought their way to the final without a loss. The game was played under sunny skies at Simi Valley's Santa Susana Park with a large crowd of spectators. After a hard fought first half played by two talented teams the score was Infero 1, Moorpark 0. Early in the second half Moorpark equalized but Inferno came right back with a goal to make it 2:1. For the rest of the game Inferno's strong defensive lineup proved to be more than a match for Moorpark and although Inferno had a number of great scoring opportunities the final result was 2:1.

Footnote: Due to the rescheduling of the All-Star playoffs because of rain, the Area semi-final and finals were held on the same day as the Victorville Coyote Classic. As a result, after the Championship game Inferno moms and dads raced to Apple Valley where the girls played two more games. A total of four games for the day, the first was the Area Semi-Final in Simi Valley at 8:00am and the last was played under lights at 6:00pm in Apple Valley. A long day for the girls who went to bed tired but Champions! Although next day Inferno failed to advance to the Coyote Classic championship round, the girls went home contented knowing that they had played great soccer all weekend long and looking forward to their next tournament.

After taking 3rd place in their first tournament Inferno brought home the second place trophy in their second tournament outing, the Simi Valley New Year Tournament.

In pool play Inferno faced some tough competition from Simi Valley, Newbury Park and Castaic. The first game on Saturday against Simi started slowly but the girls stepped up the pace and turned in a solid 3:0 result. Sunday's first game put us up against the Newbury Park A team; the score was 0:0 at half time despite some great plays from both teams but early in the second half Taylor put us 1 ahead. Newbury Park came back strong to tie the game at 1:1 and we went into the third game knowing that only a win would move us into the championship round. We scored early against Castaic and for most of the first half the game was ours. However in the second half Castaic really turned up the heat and Inferno showed their true spirit as they played an incredible defensive game; final result was 1:0 and we moved on to the Championship round.

The Championship round was played on the 31st under sunny skies like the previous two game days, however unlike the pool play days the wind would be a dominant factor. In the Semi finals against Camarillo the girls started off looking tired and were playing into the wind. That didn't stop them from scoring and after the first goal their play started to look more polished. A second goal in the second quarter and then one from Camarillo took the score to 2:1 at half time. With the wind at their backs there was nothing to stop Inferno in the second half and they owned the game turning in a 4:1 result. By the time of the kickoff whistle in the final against Saugus the wind had really started to howl. Facing the wind in the first half meant we were trailing by 0:2 by the half time whistle. In the second half with the wind at their backs the ball was firmly in the Saugus defensive third but the goals didn't come. The end score was the same as the half time score and Inferno came home with the second place trophy.

First tournament a third place trophy, second tournament a second place trophy, third tournament a first?

After only two practices team Inferno had their tournament debut at the Panther Shootout in Newbury Park.

The first game against Simi Valley started tentatively but the girls gained confidence and the final result was a solid 2:0 win. In the second pool game against Moorpark the girls kicked it into high gear and chalked up a resounding 6:0 result. The third pool game against Newbury Park was a hard fought game between two very closely matched teams. Some great soccer and the final result was a 0:0 tie.

After two wins and a tie Inferno advanced to the Championship Round as the pool winner. The semi final game against Quartz Hill started badly with Quartz Hill scoring early and going into half time Inferno were trailing by 0:2. The Quartz Hill team had some physically imposing players and our lack of experience probably resulted in a little intimidation; however the girls regrouped and came out strong in the second half. The game belonged to Inferno through the second half but didn't result in goals until Kaitlin put one in with a stunning shot over the head of the Quartz Hill goalie. Final score a 1:2 loss, but that doesn't reflect how well the team played and how much the team learned in the course of a 50 minute game. In the consolation game it was Agoura Inferno against Agoura Lightning, the end result a 4:0 win for Inferno and a 3rd place trophy to start the collection!