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Posts Tagged ‘State Cup’

Tears on the pitch!!

Posted in Girls Soccer, GU19 Whidbey Islanders, tagged , , , , , on March 30, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Erin Rosenkranz makes with the fancy footwork. (John Fisken photos)

Erin Rosenkranz makes with the fancy footwork. (John Fisken photos)

She turned 19 the day before, but age hasn't slowed down the spring in Micky LeVine's step.

   She turned 18 the day before, but old age hasn’t slowed the spring in Micky LeVine’s step.

Kendra Warwick

Kendra Warwick, motoring her way to Player of the Match honors.

Sean LeVine’s pillow might be a bit tear-stained this morning.

The GU19 Whidbey Islanders select soccer coach had a restless night after watching his squad fall apart a bit Sunday during its State Cup opener.

A day after closing the regular season with a thrilling win, the Islanders were sluggish, out of sorts and a step behind, falling 1-0 to visiting Seattle United South.

“It was pretty bad for us,” LeVine said.

Seattle United nabbed the game’s lone score inside the first 10 minutes, slipping a ball into the net off of a poorly-defended free kick.

“Our team apparently fell asleep during the free kick and allowed three players to run into the box unmarked and get about three touches on the ball before scoring,” LeVine said. “It way really ugly defending, or actually no defending.”

While the Whidbey defense clamped down after that, the offense was nonexistent for much of the day.

“Much of the rest of our game was sluggish and uninspiring,” LeVine said. “We had several great through passes to get in behind the defense, but poor timing or bad touches plagued us in the final third and we were unable to get any good shots off.”

The Islanders best opportunities both involved Micky LeVine.

On one, she took a through pass from Kendra Warwick and had the goalie beat, only to see the ball slide just wide of the open net.

On the second, Micky LeVine chipped the ball to Lydia Peplinski in front of the goal, but the young gun got caught up in a scrum and couldn’t get her shot off.

Playing with no reserves (again) and back-to-back games took its toll on the Islanders.

“We were the better team, but they came to play and we were too sluggish, possibly from playing a tough game the day before with no subs,” Sean LeVine said.

Warwick, the ultimate spark-plug, ran away with Player of the Match honors.

“That kid has a motor and she was flying around disrupting anything the other team tried to do in the middle,” Sean LeVine said. “She also put more through passes behind the defense than I could count.

“We just need someone to finish those chances that she creates.”

He also called out goaltender Kenzie Perry for her solid play in net.

“Kenzie kept us in the game, making some tough saves and she again played a full 90 in the net,” he said. “She’s been playing very well for us this season.”

The Islanders have two weeks off before returning to State Cup play. They’ll hit the road to play Seattle United Shoreline Sunday, April 12.

To see more photos from this game, pop over to:

http://www.shutterfly.com/progal/gallery.jsp?gid=768a5498ce7fdabc075e

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You bring rain? We bring pain!!

Posted in Girls Soccer, GU18 Whidbey Islanders, tagged , , , on January 13, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Islanders stars Kendra Warwick (left) and (right, top to bottom), Micky LeVine, Jennifer Spark, Kenzie Perry and Morgan Zylstra.

  GU18 Whidbey Islanders stars Kendra Warwick (left) and (right, top to bottom), Micky LeVine, Jenn Spark, Kenzie Perry and Morgan Zylstra.

Tons of injuries? Crappy playing conditions? It matters not.

Overcoming six missing players (five on injured reserve, one who missed her ride to the game) and a slippery, muddy surface in Shelton, the GU18 Whidbey Islanders soccer squad still came away with a huge victory Sunday.

Behind goals from Kendra Warwick and Morgan Zylstra, the Islanders crunched the Shelton Impact 2-1 in a State Cup game that wasn’t as close as the final score might sound.

The Impact, who boasted an 18-player roster, only got a goal during a time when they had an 11-to-10 player advantage, after Whidbey defender Jenn Spark slipped and bounced her head on the ground.

With no reserves, the Islanders hung tough in the waning moments, but did give up a goal while undermanned — though the goal only went into the net after taking an unlucky bounce off of the muddy field, nicking a Whidbey defender during a melee in front of the net.

The condition of the playing field kept the game closer than it would have been otherwise, said Islander coach Sean LeVine.

“The thing about playing on that kind of surface is that it almost levels the playing field when it comes to skill. It’s just so hard to cut and control the ball,” LeVine said. “Which was good for them, because the game was lopsided for most of the game.

“We dominated every aspect of that game,” he added. “On a solid surface I think the score would have been pretty lopsided in our favor.”

Warwick, the pride of South Whidbey, punched in the game’s first score and she did it in wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am style.

Less than 30 seconds into play, she picked off a ball and then went full-on superstar, deftly dribbling past several players and blasting home an unassisted goal. Game. Set. Match.

The Islanders weren’t done, however. While their first goal was a one-woman affair, the second involved practically everyone on the front line.

Spark, pre-injury, set it up with a free kick into the box. Micky LeVine won the battle for the ball, then Vivien Valles crossed it back across the face of the goal, where it connected with Zylstra’s perfectly-placed thigh and ricocheted into the back of the net.

Playing through injury — she hurt her ankle in the first half but, with no backup, limped through the rest of the game — Islander goalie Kenzie Perry held off Shelton’s final charge, sealing the victory.

“Our girls played hard and their determination, tenacity, and smart play won us the game,” Sean LeVine said.

The Islanders, who hope to get the majority of their injured players back this week, return to State Cup play Saturday, Jan. 18 with a home game at Ft. Nugent (2 PM) against Seattle United Shoreline.

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