Grier marched through MS soccer playoffs

Grier middle school used consecutive “shots from the mark” situations to win the Girls MS Soccer Championship this week over Cramerton.

Grier needed to get past Belmont last Thursday to play in the championship match. They progressed after outlasting Belmont through 70 minutes of a scoreless draw and winning 2-1 in “shots from the mark” ( commonly called, “PK shootout”). Neither team had many opportunities in regulation and the overtime periods. Both coach Wydo of Grier, and coach Barnhardt of Belmont looked to bulking up their defenses using Shannon Kay of Grier, and Molly Fisher of Belmont as center backs or sweepers to keep out the opposition. The resulting progession to shots allowed Grier to progress after the girls figured out how to look for corners in those big goals.

A similar scenario greeted the Grier Knights as they played Cramerton for the championship. After a 1-1 regulation match and no score in overtime, Pk’s once again forced a result.

Congratulations, we at the Front Porch are looking forward to the next year of soccer in the Gaston County area. There will be many exciting youngesters joining the high school programs, and the continued growth of the sport in this area is developing many more players and fans.

Kings Mountain wins 6th straight Gazette Cup title, Raiders finish 4th

 

On a blustry day and evening at Ashbrook, Kings Mountain defended their Gazette Cup title, 7-0 over the tournament hosts Saturday.

  

Kings Mountain outside midfielder, #10, Ramey Kerns, scored four goals in the final match and also picked up the tournament offensive MVP award. Kerns scored a total of 10 goals in the 3 match event. An outstanding finisher, Kerns shoots rockets at wide-eyed keepers. And, she’s only a sophomore!

The final match was pretty much decided in the first 30 minutes of play. Ashbrook couldn’t find the handle in the midfield and their defense looked confused. KM came from the left, right, and center on every attack.

     

The 3rd place match earlier in the evening between Forestview and South Point kept fans in their chilled aluminum seats for the full 80-minute regulation time, and then some. The teams ended tied 3-3 at regulation. According to tournament rules, other than the final, tie matches would be played directly to kicks from the mark (“penalty kicks”, for the uninitiated). Forestview, after losing in PK’s on Thursday night to Ashbrook, prevailed this evening 2-1, when “Eli” McEwan’s tying attempt dinged off the crossbar. South Point settled for 4th place in the loss.

The South Point-Forestview match had both teams fighting the gusty winds all evening. Each team earned more than 7 corner kicks apiece when misplayed balls were blown out over the goal line. Forestview took an early 2-0 lead until senior midfielder, Christine Ellington drilled a direct kick into goal to make it 2-1 about 8 minutes before half. Mary Leslie Miller of Forestview scored once more to make it 3-1 at the half.

In the second half, South Point picked up the pace of play and managed to keep possession for most of the half. Sophomore striker, Shannon Holder, scored two goals to tie the match in regulation.

If it were not for a couple of near-misses by freshman speedster, Diamond Davis, the Lady Raiders would have notched their third win in six outings this season. Christine Ellington also had a near miss directly from a corner kick that brought the fans to their feet.

Elizabeth “Eli” McEwan was presented with the Mike McCurry award which represents sportsmanship, outstanding play, and overall spirit of competition. Diamond Davis and Christine Ellington were selected to the All-Gazette team.

  

Girl’s Gazette Cup

Results from Wednesday’s matches as reported by the Gazette.

 Jaguars, Green Wave win big in first round

Thursday at Martha Rivers Park
HT  vs. HH, 5 p.m.
Kings Mountain vs. South Point, 6:30 p.m.
FV  vs. Ashbrook, 8 p.m.

Saturday at Ashbrook
Seventh-place game, noon 
Fifth-place game, 2 p.m.
Third-place game, 4 p.m.
Championship, 6 p.m