Youth soccer opens fall play with win by U13 boys team

Amid all of the activities for Air Force Appreciation Day, soccer players were back on the pitch Saturday for the start of the competitive fall season.

The Mountain Home Youth Soccer Association is represented by five teams in the District 3 League: U11 Girls from Glenns Ferry, U12 Boys, U13 Boys, U14 Boys and U14 Girls from Mountain Home.

Though there was only one notch in the win column, coaches indicated they were pleased with the first day's efforts.

The U14 Boys team were the only team not in action, having a bye in their schedule.

The Glenns Ferry U11 Girls are making history by being the first competitive youth soccer team to represent their town. Coach Lorri Crandall led her young charges into action against Vallivue, coming up short in a 3-1 loss.

Coach Crandall said she was "very pleased with how the girls played in their first game. We out-shot our opponent but we just couldn't get it to the back of the net. The girls played their positions well."

Anna Orr scored the lone point for the Co-Pilots, as repeated shots by Melissa Garza and Raegan Grigg were stopped by the Vallivue goalie. Defenders Cassi and Lupita Villavicencio and Elizabeth Zito were effective in turning back several of the visitors' scoring drives.

Coach Humberto Garcia's U14 Girls suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss at Eastside Park as the visiting Lady Cougs from Caldwell broke a 1-1 tie late in the second half to take home the victory.

Coach Garcia said "the girls were very enthusiastic and played well. We have quite a few new girls and the team should only get better with more practice and more games."

Nichole Koopman found the back of the net for the lone tally for the Tigers.

Vallivue's U12 Boys came to town and played a faster, more aggressive game than Coach Curtis Viall's Mountain Home team, shutting out United 7-0. Isaiah Carlisle and Eric Stratton put in strong performances in the contest, as did Shaun Holland with several shots on goal.

The U13 Boys notched the only win of the day in an exciting home-field contest. The Tigers led 3-0 at the half but defensive breakdowns allowed Vallivue to rally and tie the game in the second half.

Within one minute of the tying goal, Ricardo Araujo, who scored earlier in the game, received a through ball from Kylar Shiltz and nailed his second point in a hard shot over the goalies' head to secure the Tiger victory.

Brendan O'Neill had the Tigers' remaining two scores, while defenders Chance Llewellyn, Austin Lucas and Madison Vines were instrumental in shutting down several Vallivue offensive drives.

Several young players from the U13 Boys attended Olympic Development Program team tryouts in Boise on Sunday, with Austin Lucas being selected for the State Team player pool and goalie Jack Richelieu being selected for further evaluation.