The U14 Inferno had by far their best showing to date at the annual Chilliwack pre-season tournament last weekend.
Inferno won three out of four games against some tough competitors to secure a third place finish in a group of eight teams.
Great positioning, ball movement and much on-field communication made for exciting games that did not lack a physical side. There were come-back victories, a shoot-out win, a loss, many injuries, swimming, Elvis, shopping, many goals, many near misses, an active team doctor, triangle shaped food, great saves, tears, laughter, a broken-down car, cold packs, tensor bandages, funny smelling air, some solid shoulder checks and a cooler of cold and dirty water dumped over a coach's head.
U13 girls
The Vipers came second to a very strong Abbotsford side in the same tournament in Chilliwack. In a hotly-contested battle for the silver medal, the Vipers came out on top in a shootout.
The Vipers started the weekend against Abbotsford, who were clearly a league above the rest of the pack. After finding themselves down 4-0 early in the second half, Vipers rallied back to hold off any more damage and finished strong with a goal by Leah Ewert.
In the second match, the Vipers struggled to get going in the heat, but picked it up and looked to be taking control of the game when they were buoyed by a goal.
Zoey Schutz stepped to the spot and calmly converted the penalty after an Aldergrove defender, who was lucky not be sent off, made a hand save in the box.
Unfortunately a few momentary lapses resulted in a breakaway and a quick goal against, giving momentum to Aldergrove in the 2-1 win.
In game three, the Vipers came out strong against Squamish, and on goals by Hannah Smith, two from Leah and one from Zoey, they picked up an impressive 4-1 win.
With five teams close in the standings and a scoring system that rewards goals, the Vipers could now clinch second with three goals and a win in their final match against Surrey Thunder.
Unfortunately, the Vipers came out flat and were down 3-0 in the first half. However, in the second half, a goal by Cassidy Craig-Watters, another goal on a penalty and great defence anchored by Ali Blattler and Arielle Vourtsis led to the tying goal with two minutes left by Leah.
The game came down to the last shot in penalty kicks, with Viper keeper Stephanie Slingerland making the stop. Stephanie played fantastic in goal, making three saves in the shootout in which she also shot and scored a ripper to assure the Vipers victory and silver for the tournament.
Ali also scored in the shootout, as did Zoey who was voted Vipers' MVP.
U13 boys
Sunshine Coast United won two and lost two at the annual preseason tournament in Chilliwack Aug. 29 to 30.
United out flying in their opener. Donnie Dixon scored twice in the 4-0 win that also included goals from Cole Mowbray and a 25-yard screamer from Trevor Julius.
They were brought back down to earth in the second game, conceding five goals in the first half. A stern half-time chat from coach Darren Smith awakened the boys who at least kept a clean sheet in the second half for a 5-0 final score.
Sunday morning's opener proved to be the closest game of United's tournament, a 1-1 tie resulting in the dreaded penalty shootout. Despite two saves from United goalie Matt Whittall, Golden Ears prevailed as United's first four shooters could not find the back of the net.
That was soon forgotten in the final game, an emphatic 5-0 win over Squamish, with highlight-reel goals from Will Johnston, Ryan Judd, Hamish Troup and two from Griff Reader.
