While soccer fans around the world are rooting for their favorite teams,
Stamford has its own Cup winning Championship team! After a hard
fought battle, the Stamford Hurricanes U-14 Boys soccer team was
declared Co-Champions (with the Enfield Wolves) at the Connecticut Cup
State Finals at Curtiss Park in Simsbury on Saturday. Despite numerous
scoring opportunities on both sides, and double overtime, the game
ended with a 0-0 tie. Unlike the FIFA World Cup Championships, penalty
kicks are not used to determine an ultimate winner in the case of a
tie. Instead Co-Champions are declared in the Connecticut Cup
tournament.
It is a great achievement for any team to reach
the state finals, with 38 teams from across the state vying for the
State Championship Cup. This is the first time since 2003 that Stamford
has had a CT Cup Champion in any age group or level. The Stamford
Youth Soccer League will honor their State Champion Team at an awards
dinner.
This has been a long road for the boys, who allowed only
one goal in during the six-week tournament. The lone goal let in
occurred during the first week of play against Glastonbury, which
Stamford won 3 to 1. Stamford breezed through their next match against
Southington with a 7 to 0 win. In the quarterfinals, Stamford blanked
Westport 2 to 0 to move into the semi-finals. Stamford then faced stiff
competition against Norwalk Thunder, a fierce rival in regular league
play, but defeated them (2-0) with an excellent combination of scoring
power and rock solid defense.
Head coach Santiago Valderrama and
assistant coaches Oscar Condori and Johnny Sanchez led Stamford to a
very strong year, beginning with a 1st place award at the Fairfield FAST
Labor Tournament, a 2nd place award at the Rocky Hill Columbus Day
Tournament, a 2nd place finish in fall League play, and most recently, a
2nd place finish at the Massapequa Memorial Day Tournament on Long
Island.
The U-14 boys are particularly thrilled to be declared
State Champions since it is their final season of playing together
before heading off to play high school soccer in the fall. Many of the
boys, who attend six different schools, have been playing together and
representing Stamford in League and Tournament play since they were
seven years old.
Congratulations Hurricanes!
Group Photo:
Back row (from left to right) Manager Beth Gallagher, Head Coach Santiago Valderrama, Sebastian Valderrama, Daniel Rivas, Joe Ertl, Assistant Coach Johnny Sanchez, Assistant Coach Oscar Condori
Second row (from left to right) Leo Filgueiras, Danny Sanchez, Donal Mahoney, Goalie Yarnel Valle, Josh Zavala, Richard Gallagher, and Michael Rybl
Front row (from left to right) Ramiro Escobar, Derek Harper, Octavio Avila, Artur Kotuzyak, David Condori, and Ovidio Beltran.
Photo Date: June 19, 2010
Photo Place: CT Cup Finals, Curtiss Park, Simsbury CT