The second match of the Pacific Coast Challange was against a squad from 3-Rivers. The overall was match very close. Both teams were off and on - sometimes moving the ball well, and at other times chasing the play. 3-Rivers had a few good early chances, but were unable to break through the Crossfire defense to be truly dangerous and the first half ended in a scoreless draw.

After the break things played out much like the first. Both teams were showing good control and movement for short periods of time, but as the match approached full-time both teams started playing a longer game. And about 10 minutes from time one of those sending balls made it over an outside defender, and was picked up by a winger who turned the corner on goal. #25 Nico made an absolutely amazing parry of the point blank shot from just 8 yards out, but the deflection popped up and 3-Rivers were able to run in the rebound.

The final ten minutes saw Crossfire pressing hard, as they searched for an opening with their own set of long sending balls. And it generated several dangerous chances, but the 3-Rivers defense was up to the task with Crossfire getting only one real shot on frame through the entire match. Crossfire 0, 3-Rivers 1

The last time Crossfire played Westsound, in Idaho, Westsound was on the board early and carried the lead nearly until the end when the boys scored three quick goals to steal the win. This time there was no stealing. Crossfire started out slowly with Westsound getting the early run of play. But Crossfire was not without its chances, and at about the 10 minute mark #8 Adrian rounded the left wing, passed in close to #11 Rohan who was about 12 yards out. But Rohan was tightly marked and smartly laid off to #14 Nima who drove the ball home for the game winning goal.

After that Westsound pretty much checked out for the rest of the match. Westsound had some good individual play here and there but could not seem to string anything together. Crossfire was moving the ball well, and though the final score did not reflect how well (it could easily have been 8-nil), they did manage to find the net three more times. The second goal game just before the break, with #11 Rohan sending a short looping cross to #8 Adrian. Adrian was unchallenged,  pulled the ball down nicely and unleashed from about 8 yards out.

The third and fourth goals after the break were just icing on the cake. #14 Nima sent a ball in the air to #3 Alex who nodded the ball on to #5 Callan. Callan took the ball on the half volley and rifled the ball past the keep from about 16 yards for his first goal of the season. The final goal saw #8 Adrian beathing the right defender on the outside, turning on goal, waiting for the keeper to make his move, deftly pushing the ball past, and then, with all the hard work done, Adrian slotted the ball into the empty net. Crossfire 4, Westsound 0

The third day at regionals matched the boys against another Washington team. This time it was Westsound FC. And though the boys only needed a draw to advance, like the previous two days the boys managed to keep the excitement levels up to the very last minute - this time by letting Westsound score first off an early defensive error just five minutes into the match.

The boys were losing for the first time in the tournament and It seemed to have a very sobering effect as Crossfire started playing their best football of the tournament. Even so Westsound definitely had the run of play in the first half. They were playing mistake free which allowed them to get a number of scary shots off, but thankfully nothing more on frame in the first half.

Bernie hadn’t really yelled at the boys much during the tournament.  After all he is a guest coach,  and he doesn’t really know the players,  but whatever he said at half time must have been just right.  After the break the midfield was suddenly alive. The first touch was better and if a ball was too hot the boys smartly played it to their teammates. The aimless headers were now going to a black shirt, players were moving to get open,  the passes were made first time instead of after the second or third touch, and as a result, gone was much of the negative play caused by holding the ball too long.

The first 20 minutes of the second half saw the ball spend its entire life in the Westsound defensive end with Crossfire continously threatening and eventually winning a PK. And though the kick went wide of the post the boys kept pressing. Westsound would occassionally counter, but the ball always found its way back to the Crossfire offensive half. You knew it was coming, it was just a question of when.  When came at the 60th minute when #22 Phillip made an end run around the right side, broke a couple of tackles and passed hard across the goal mouth where #9 Jonathan soundly struck the ball home to tie things up and put some real spark into the team.

Just a couple of minutes after that #11 Rohan was through, battling two defenders all the way to the goal where his shot was blocked by the rushing Westsound keeper. But #28 Shawn was just a few yards off and back to the right and was able to pick up the rebound on a full stride and put Crossfire up for the first time in the match. And then another couple of minutes later the Westsound keeper found himself fully 10 yards out of the box, where #11 Rohan successfully tackled the ball. The keeper’s only recourse was to take Rohan down to stop the goal and the referee awarded a free kick.. From the right and about 30 yards out, #3 Alex took the kick and curved the ball into the upper right 90 - double Crossfire’s lead with just 4 minutes to full time.

Westsound drove hard off the tap, and immediately countered with a goal of their own cutting the lead to one with just 3 minutes to play. The Westsound forward graciously ripped the ball from the netting and quickly (very quickly) brought it back to center for the tap at which point Crossfire drove the ball down to the far left corner and simply holed up trying to waste time. When Westsound fouled Crossfire in the corner, Crossfire took a 1 foot free kick and again holed up in the corner. When Westsound poked that ball over the end line, Crossfire took a 1 foot corner kick and again waited in the corner. The third time they had to throw it in but by then time was out and Crossfire was on it way to the finals. Crossfire 3, Westsound 2

Today’s opponent was the Evergreen ’93 Green team from our own state of Washington. This second match of the tournament saw the boys doubly at risk. They were simultaneously at risk of winning everything (a good thing), and at risk of giving all of their parents heart attacks (probably not such a good thing).

The first half started off with the standard return pass to the base of the circle and the long sending ball to the winger. But the Evergreen team was all over that and easily cleared the initial threat, but when Crossfire picked up the clearance they quickly worked it down the left side with some quick passing and then #13 Danny looped a short ball over two Evergreen defenders where Crossfire had two forwards waiting with no opposition. #32 Jesse picked up the pass and cooly slotted the ball home from 14 yards in only the 2nd minute of the match.

The next ten minutes saw Crossfire let up a bit allowing Evergreen to make some runs but no dangerous threats. Then for the next 20 minutes both teams seemed content to pass it back and forth to each other in the midfield. Finally, about 2 minutes from time, Crossfire connected on a series of passes to send #9 Jonathan down the left wing. Jonathan dug himself into the corner and then retreated to dig himself out and take a right footed cross into the center where #28 Shawn was able to side-foot the ball in on a full volley from 8 yards just two minutes before the break.

The second half played out very much like the first. Both teams were passing it back and forth around the midfield. Evergreen had a few chances but nothing really dangerous and were even starting to look tired. Then about 10 minutes from full-time Evergreen seemed to light up. They started pressing and Crossfire seemed content to wait out the final whistle by packing the box. And so when things started getting a little crazy in the box, just one defensive miscommunication is all it takes and suddenly Evergreen is granted new life with a goal just 5 minutes from time.

Like the day before Crossfire is now struggling to hold on to three points. But today they seemed to take the end-game a bit more seriously, quickly clearing balls, and not letting Evergreen set up outside their box. Crossfire even had some threats of their own before the referee blew the whistle for the last time. Crossfire 2, Evergreen 1

Crossfire had a great start at regionals. Early on the boys showed good control, were moving the ball well, had the better part of possession, and spent the most of the first half in the Utah defensive end. And it all paid off in about the 12th minute. #19 Hunter dropped a long free kick behind the defense. #11 Rohan ran onto the ball and flipped a shot around the rushing keeper to take the early lead.

The later part of the half saw more of the same with several very close shots, a couple of sizzlers from the edge of the box, and some really great punts from #1 Seth to keep the pressure up through to the break.

The second half started very much like the first. The scoring started just two minutes in with #19 Hunter taking a long free kick just over the Utah defenders.  And again #11 Rohan picked it up and ran it in to double the score.  But with the wind behind them and the early second half wake up call the Blue Knights started to put things into gear. The teams were now countering each other, running end to end with Crossfire getting off a shot here and there and Utah being stopped just outside the Crossfire box. On one such counter #11 Rohan rounded the outside corner worked in across the end line and then passed inside. #28 Shawn received the ball around the 6 yard line, "faked" a shot to put the Utah keeper on the ground and then rolled it past to put Crossfire up by 3 with 20 minutes to play.

Utah was now in overdrive. They were freely moving the ball around the midfield and essentially camped at the top of the Crossfire box. There were several large defensive pileups and many blocked shots. Utah couldn’t seem to get a real shot off but kept pressing and were able to force some extra contact in the box and garner a PK which they converted. They weren’t back in the game, but they were on the board with about 15 minutes to play and continued to press.

Crossfire had a couple of good opportunites to move the gap back to three, but went wide of the post both times. Utah’s persistence won them a series of corner kicks, including one wind assisted kick that curved directly into the Crossfire net.  The Blue Knights were suddenly back in the match,  and they weren’t about to let Crossfire walk away with three points.  The next ten minutes saw the ball spend almost its entire time just outside the Crossfire penalty area. Utah was constantly moving the ball, looking for the opening, and even picked up another corner kick off a blocked shot. It was exciting. Perhaps too exciting.  But even with three minutes of added time it was not enough.  The shot never came. Crossfire 3, Blue Knights 2

The second match of the second day had Crossfire already through to the finals. They didn’t have to win, draw or even score to advance. While they were able to have a little fun at the start, with #19 Hunter attempting a 50-yard goal on the kick-off, Andy made it clear to the boys that we weren’t taking it easy on the Evergreen squad. Still it took the boys more than a few minutes to settle down to the work at hand.

The first half didn’t see much in the way of scoring. Crossfire dominated play, with the goalkeeper, #1 Seth, never having the opportunity to kick the ball with the 15 knot wind at his back (I am not sure Seth ever touched the ball). The boys were moving the ball pretty well, but couldn’t string anything together until about midway through the half when #11 Rohan found #32 Jesse with a through ball. Jesse was in the clear and the keeper never had a chance. Up by one at the break.

At the half, Andy dimissed the boys with just a sip of water and little talking except the fact that he expected to see five goals before the final whistle. They never quite got to five, but they most certainly got down to business in the second half when nearly all play was in the Evergreen defensive half. The first goal of the half came through #12 Phillip. He had worked it down the right wing, been tackled once or twice but finally made it around the corner and sent a high (very high) cross into the goal mouth. #14 Nima, who had been working hard to get in the play, was in exactly the right spot and was able to out jump the goalkeeper to double the lead.

The third goal saw Evergreen desperate to get #28 Shawn out of the box. Shawn had worked hard to get in the box, but had to turn out from the last defender who wasn’t content with simple delay and took a push from behind before Shawn was able to clear the eighteen. The guy in the yellow shirt pointed at the mark and #28 Shawn buried the ball into the left corner.

The final goal of the match started with #28 Shawn on the right side. Shawn was able to work his way out the corner and chip a ball over #12 Phillip and the Evergreen goalkeeper on the near post. Just a few yards beyond that was a waiting #14 Nima. Nima jumped to head the ball but it was too high and he had to foot it in on its way down to double his personal tally for the match.

Evergreen had a few chances as full time approached, and #1 Seth finally got a chance to touch the ball, but it all amounted to nothing and Crossfire went on to win the match. Crossfire 4, Evergreen 0

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The second day and second match of the tournament saw the boys against the first team from the neighboring Issaquah Soccer Club. Though the ISC squad was a touch larger than most of the Crossfire players, the Crossfire players seemed a tad faster on the reaction and were able to set themselves up with numerous through balls throughout the match. One such ball saw #21 Austin working it in close, but having to peel off to the left side of the goal where he circled back and then crossed it over to the far post where #12 Phillip was able to start things off where he finished the night before.

The second goal of the match was all speed. #11 Rohan started at the half-line raced down the right wing, around the defender, into the box, and then coolly slotted the ball past the oncoming keeper. No fuss. No muss. 2-nil. The rest of the half saw ISC trapping and catching Crossfire in a continuous series of offside calls.

The second half looked much like the first. ISC was trapping, Crossfire was passing internally and countering with through balls. And it looked like things were paying off before #11 Rohan had two goals called back for offside. Still the boys pressed on. Andy instructed the boys to keep a good 5 feet onside so as not to tempt the official’s flag. And for #11 Rohan, the third time proved to be the charm when he received a sideways pass on the left from #21 Austin and found the net for the fourth time to get his second goal of the match.

The ISC squad continued to press through to fulltime with Crossfire packing the box and suffering through a few goal-line clearances by the defenders, but their hard work earned them their second shutout and second match with maximum points. With FC Shoreline securing only 9 points in their second match, Crossfire were already through to the finals with an 11 point lead and one match to play. Crossfire 3, ISC Arsenal 0

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The boys headed up to Burlington for their second tournament of the year, the same tournament that saw them three and out last year. And their first opponent was the same opponent they lost to in the first match last year as well. But the boys weren’t into the whole history repeating itself thing.

The boys took control of the match early with a mix of short passing a long balls to switch fields to the unattended wingers. The scoring opened when #19 Hunter sent a long ball over the defense for #28 Shawn to run onto. The keeper came out of the box to cut Shawn out but misplayed the ball and Shawn was able to collect the ball and calmly pass a slow roller into the center of the net. The boys took that lead into the half.

Crossfire didn’t waste any time after the break and scored within the first 16 seconds. #9 Jonathan started down the left sideline and inside the box near to the end line where he able to get a short pass into #32 Jesse who had his first shot blocked from six yards, got his own rebound and then took another point-blank shot which was deflected off another defender and into the goal. 16 seconds !!

Things slowed down a bit after that (as it is difficult to score every 16 seconds). The boys continued to work the ball with a combination of short passing and long balls to the opposite field. Sometimes it looked like they were managing the clock, but really they were just maintaining their poise and patience as they worked to squeeze the last point out of the match.

About 5 minutes from time #28 Shawn had taken the ball down the right wing and found himself 1v2 in the corner when #12 Phillip came to the rescue. Shawn was able to flip it out to Phillip who evaded one of the defenders and near posted the ball from just outside the 6 to secure maximum points and the team’s second shutout of the year. Crossfire 3, FC Shoreline 0

The semi-final match was against the ’93 A team from own club. Our own boys, the ’93 Black team, had 13 players and just over an hour to rest before the match, compared against the ’93 A team with 15 players, and nearly 24 hours rest. But at the same time, while the A team had most of their ODP players available,  they were without their two starting forwards. The match got underway about 15 minutes late, and quickly saw the difference between the two teams. While our own boys were all about quicker short movement, the A team had a much longer game. And though the first half ended in a scoreless draw the run of play seemed to favor the ’93 Black team who just seemed sharper (perhaps because they had just played earlier).

The start of the second half saw more of the same. Two different styles of play. ’93 Black worked it in with short passes, ’93 A sending it long to a fast forward. And the short game saw the early dividends. #11 Rohan received the ball at top the box looked to shoot but chose to flick the ball on to #21 Austin who was positioned off the left post. Austin received the ball, closed the distance a few more yards and put it in on the near post. ’93 Black was up by a goal.

And for another 5-10 minutes the ’93 Black team kept up the pressure with a couple of dangerous chances and a pair of corner kicks that almost saw them up by two. But with about 15 minutes left in the match they simply ran out of gas. Two matches in 3 hours against a fully rested larger squad of generally more athletic players proved to be too much. Each incursion by the ’93 A team made it deeper into the ’93 Black end of the field with the ’93 Black team unable to find the energy to push up afterwards. Eventually our own forwards were camped just outside the D, and the ’93 A defense was parked at the bottom of the circle. And even if the team did push up, it wasn’t clear that they would have been able to run back to catch the fast forwards on the long balls.

The first goal by the ’93 A team was a bit lucky on an impossible angle and the ’93 Black keeper was at least partially screened. But the second goal was well deserved and the ’93 A team went on to win. Perhaps it was for the better as the finals match would have been our third start of the day in less than 5 hours time against yet another more rested, larger squad in the HPFC Heat team who went on to win the tournament. Crossfire 93 Black 1, Crossfire ’93 A 2

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The third match of the tournament, the first on Sunday, was against an unknown Pumas Unam team from "Seattle’s Official Soccer School". Unknown or not, the Pumas were not without talent and the Crossfire team had difficulty coping with their speed and physical play. Still, Crossfire were able to get on the board early. #11 Rohan had done an end run around their left defender, and passed to #32 Jesse in the middle. Jesse got a shot off, but it was blocked by another defender. The rebound landed short and onto the left foot of a waiting #9 Jonathan who buried the ball inside the right post. But the Pumas quickly countered with a miraculous cross that drifted long and curved just enough to hit the inside of the far post to level the match.

After break saw more of the same. Crossfire was stringing together small series’ of passes but were mostly stopped short by the fast and physical Pumas defense. That was until #21 Austin coming down the left side with the ball made a last second pass inside to #11 Rohan, who took it in a few more yards and as the Pumas defender closed Rohan made a last second flick over to #28 Shawn who rifled the ball inside the right post to put the team back on top. But the Pumas did not give up and were able to take advantage of a Crossfire miscommunication and level the match a few minutes before full time.

On an adjacent field the NW Nationals finished with full points to go up with 20 for the tournament. Crossfire needed a win, a draw, or a loss with at least three goals to advance. The Pumas tried to kick things up a notch hoping to catch the Crossfire defense with a combination of speed and long balls, but time ran out. Crossfire came away with a draw and advanced to the semi-finals. Crossfire 2, Pumas Unam 2

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The second match of the Spring Classic was against the NW Nationals A team who came to the match sporting more than half a dozen ODP players, and it showed. They had excellent ball movement, and maintained possession for minutes at a time with most of that time spent in the Crossfire defensive end. But the NW Nationals could never seem to piece together the series to get through the Crossfire defense. At the same time Crossfire was finding it difficult penetrating the NW midfield and had to resort to longer sending balls.

Eventually, #3 Alex found himself with the ball inside the NW box with one defender to beat. Alex flipped the ball inside the defender and tried to go around the outside. But the defender stepped out on Alex and checked him to the ground. Then there was a whistle and a guy in a yellow shirt pointing to the mark. There was no discussion on who was taking the kick. #3 Alex wasn’t letting anyone near the ball. Alex passed the ball low to the right. The keeper guessed correctly and had a good extension, but the ball passed a few centimeters from his outstretched glove and into the right side netting.

And that was pretty much it. The NW Nationals continued to control the match and for the last 15 minutes pressed deeply into the Crossfire defensive end. But for all the ball movement The Nationals were only able to muster a few shots over the bar, and a sizeable collection of corner kicks that, in the end, amounted to nothing. #1 Seth and the defense picked up their first shutout of the year. Crossfire 1, NW Nationals 0

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The team kicked things off at 8:00 AM on Saturday against Eugene Metro FC - a Gold Premier team from Oregon. It took a while for the boys to get into their groove with no score at the break. But in the second half, once their passing game was in gear, Crossfire started pressuring the Eugene defense. #28 Shawn was moving down the right side and into the box when he was cut down by a Eugene Metro defender. After a brief discussion on who would take the spot kick, Shawn buried the ball into the back left of the net.

The second goal also started on the foot of #28 Shawn. Shawn was moving to the right from the center of the box. As a Eugene defender tracked him down Shawn popped a short chip over his head to #3 Alex waiting at the mark. Alex brought the ball down and one timed a powerful half volley into the back left of the net - to put the boys up by two.

Shortly after, Eugene FC made a quick run and were able to get on the board to reduce the gap to one. But the gap was restored quickly after that with #32 Jesse evading several defenders before being mown down about 6 yards from the goal by the same defender who took out #28 Shawn earlier in the match. This time #19 Hunter took the kick. The keeper guessed correctly, but the ball was hard and low on the ground and into the left side netting. Crossfire was back up by two.

Eugene Metro worked hard to close the gap against an equally hard working Crossfire squad, but the Oregon team were also fighting an uphill battle against the officials. They had suffered a few yellow cards because of dissent and then suffered a red card for unsporting behavior. Once Eugene was down to 10 players, the match was out of reach. Crossfire 3, Eugene Metro 1

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