Go Sports Life By Andy Kaasa

COLUMBUS, IN - The U17 and U18 teams of Cincinnati-area club Ohio Elite needed wins for very different reasons Tuesday night, but both of Doug Bracken's squads accomplished their missions here in Midwest Regional League play.

The U18 team defeated a hard-battling Carmel United Fire team 2-0 to clinch its 5th consecutive MRL Premier title, qualifying it for this summer's U.S. Youth Soccer Region II Championships in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The U17 squad was facing a different battle. By defeating Indianapolis-area club Dynamo FC 5-3, Ohio Elite gives itself one last chance to avoid relegation in the MRL. If they can defeat or tie crosstown rival Classics Hammer on May 19, the team avoids the drop to Division One.

Dynamo player Estee Outcalt (red) races after the ball.

(scroll down for a match report from the Ohio Elite-Dynamo U17 match)


U18: Ohio Elite 2,  Carmel United 0

The final whistle for this game brought no 5-in-a-row victory celebrations from Bracken's side.  Not even, as one parent put it, a golf clap. But for a neutral observer, seeing all the parts of the Ohio Elite attack in operation was a thing of beauty.

Over and over again the squad won possession and started a sequence of passes that reminded how the game is meant to be played. Against a good Carmel team that defended bravely and had their moments going forward, Ohio Elite was just truly…well, elite.

Santa Clara-bound midfielder Allie Vernon was the engine, or even transmission for the attack. She ran things from the midfield and was constantly moving the ball forward, either on the dribble or with pinpoint and purposeful passes. Alyssa Rich (North Carolina) andLisa Nouanesengsy (Indiana) were active and skillful on the outside, with Elizbeth Burchenal (North Carolina),Dana Dalrymple (Iowa) and Ally Berry (Wake Forest) also good going forward.

It was future North Carolina Tar Heels' player Burchenal who created the first goal with some good work on the left and an excellent pullback for Alyssa Rich, who knocked the ball home from close range for a 1-0 first-half lead. You might have thought a big score was going to be run up, especially with the way Vernon was playing, but Carmel's back line put up a hearty effort, and Missouri-bound goalkeeper Jessica Gwin was phenomenal, especially in the 2nd half, producing a number of highlight reel saves and otherwise standing her ground nicely.

In fact as Gwin continued to frustrate the Ohio Elite finishers, Carmel could be seen as having a puncher's chance to level the match. Carmel attackers Ciersten Burks, Allie VandeWater and Jessica Warren all looked dangerous at times, but ultimately didn't get enough chances against Ohio Elite defenders such as Kiley Naylor (Virginia),Sarah Vinson (Marshall) and Leslie Twehues (Kentucky).

The game was put away in the closing minutes when Vernon led a rapier-like counterattack, releasing Burchenal with a perfectly-timed pass that was followed by a good 1v1 finish past the exposed and onrushing Gwin for a 2-0 final scoreline.

Vernon said another MRL title is fine, but the team's real goal is to get over the hump at the Region II Championships.

"We want to go all the way this year. We're training really hard. We want to get there this year," she said. "We've had two falling outs at regionals but we're hoping this will be a good year for us."

Bracken admitted not coaching this special group of players will be something to get used to.

"Everybody asks me that. I've been coaching the core of them since they were 10, but we've added some along the way," he said. "It's a special group and I will miss them, because they play the kind of soccer that I would love for any of my teams to play. The difference is it's hard to get this much talent on one team."

It should be noted that Carmel's style of play, honest defense without cynical fouling, and an attempt to string passes together when they had the ball, also contributed to the match being lovely to watch. Too often in youth soccer when a team is faced with an exceptional opponent they resort to mostly fouling, and to Carmel coach Mark Castro's credit they did no such thing.