The start of the holiday season is also the start of showcase season for soccer clubs, and it was a busy weekend for the RDA with college coaches out shopping for their next classes of players.
Boys teams traveled to South Carolina and Eastern Pa. last weekend, while back home, the girls weekend of the inaugural Riverhounds SC Three Rivers College Showcase was a success with games at Highmark, Montour Junction and sites around the Pittsburgh area.
The big travelers of the weekend were the 2003/04 Boys, who went to Greer, S.C. for the ECNL South Carolina weekend. Sam Farner and Caden Carpenter fired the Hounds to a 2-1 win over Loudoun SC (Va.), and Carpenter, Anders Bordoy, Ethan Gregory, Luke Lenz and Bubby Towns blistered the net in a 5-0 win over Skyline Elite (Va.). Though the weekend ended with a 1-0 loss to Tulsa SC (Okla.), it was a strong overall weekend for the team against tough, out-of-conference ECNL opposition.
The Hounds also were represented in the ECNL National Selection game by defender Matt Lucas, who suited up for the East in the all-star contest last Friday night. Lucas and the East nearly posted a clean sheet but conceded a late equalizer, yet they came out victorious on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
Out in Eastern Pa., the Hounds were piling up wins at the PA Classics Winter College Showcase. All three teams that traveled — the 05, 06 and 07 Boys — finished atop their division by combining for an unbeaten 5-0-4 record.
Among the weekend’s highlights were a four-goal haul by Alex Hauskrecht in the 05 Boys’ final match — a 6-0 win over BRYC Elite Academy (Va.) — complete clean sheets on the weekend by both the 05 and 06 sides, and a resounding 5-1 win over Yardley Makefield (Pa.) in the finale for the 07 Boys, which was enough to swing goal difference in their favor to clinch the top spot.
The Three Rivers College Showcase, the second event in the Riverhounds SC Tournament Series, got rolling with girls teams representing five states descending upon Western Pa. Plenty of talent was on display from all the participating clubs, and many of the RDA sides posted impressive team results in the two-day event.
The 03/04, 05 and 07 Girls ECNL sides, as well as the 03/04 Regional League Girls team, won every match to give the RDA four division winners out of the 12 contested. The 03/04 ECNL side was arguably the most dominant of the bunch, outscoring their three opponents 16-1, as Jessica Molitoris led the squad with six goals.
The 03/04 Regional League side was tested in their opening match by Greater Toledo (Ohio), as Londynn Gonzalez’s strike was the difference in a 1-0 win, but their defensive effort continued to be at a high level. The team now hasn’t given up a goal in five matches — now more than 420 minutes — as goalkeepers Ava Wert and Kameryn Nelson split the shutout-producing work.
The 05 Girls took top honors with a 2-1 win in their finale against Bridge City behind goals by Julia Lozowski and Lola Abraham, the latter of whom posted five goals for the weekend. The 07 Girls had to do their hardest work early, earning a 3-1 win over Kings Hammer (Ohio) on goals by Robin Reilly, Maddie Barr and Sierra Dupre before Reilly tallied the lone goal in a 1-0 win over Cleveland Force.
Also notable was the play of the 06 ECNL Girls, who finished unbeaten but out of the top spot with a 2-0-2 record, while the 06 East Girls (1-0-2) and the 06 Regional League Girls (1-1-1) hurt each other’s bid for the top spot by playing out a highly competitive 0-0 draw.
Showcase season will continue through the winter, and more games from across the RDA can be found each week on the Results page at www.riverhounds.com.
