Content courtesy of Steve Carpenter and Eric Faison

The Chesterfield United U12 Elite Girls team celebrated an extended July 4 weekend participating in the U.S. Youth Soccer Region I Championship Tournament and claiming the Champion title with a 1-0 victory against Velocity Soccer Club of Maine. The United FC girls qualified for the tournament in the U12 Short Sided (8 vs. 8) competition by winning the Virginia State Cup in May.

The team traveled to Marshall University for opening ceremonies Thursday, July 1. The eight player delegation was the smallest group in attendance, but marched in the Parade of States with the other state champions wearing Virginia’s appointed colors.

The United FC girl’s Region I Championship tournament play began Friday, July 2 with a loss to Pennsylvania East. The girls struggled to organize without three players and their head coach, who were all overseas and unable to attend the tournament. The Virginia girls bounced back in bracket play over the next two days defeating Rhode Island (3-0) and West Virginia (1-0) to earn a spot in the semi-finals.

The semi-final match on July 5 started poorly for the Chesterfield team as a miscue on a routine play gave their New York East opponents an early lead. The Virginians battled back in the second half, finishing a corner kick to put the game on even terms. The game remained tied 1-1 at the end of the 60-minute match.

The teams kicked off to play 20 minutes of overtime in an effort to settle the match. The breakthrough came for the United FC girls when they finished a corner kick in the 79th minute. The New York side was not able to equalize within the final minute. The last minute strike avoided the penalty kick shootout and gave the Chesterfield team a birth in the finals.

The championship match kicked off Tuesday, July 6 in what was to be a contest between two evenly matched opponents. The Virginia and Maine teams had a similar story. Both lost their opening match and finished second in bracket play. Both had to beat the winner of the opposing bracket to advance. Both won their hotly contested semi-final match in overtime the day before. Both teams were on a four game winning streak with momentum on their side. Both teams knew only one team could prevail and battled back and forth to gain the advantage in the match.

The break came four minutes from half time when United FC directed a corner kick on goal ahead of an on-rushing Maine keeper. The one goal advantage would be enough as the teams battled to full time.

In addition to winning the Champion title and the right to hold the Region I U12 Girls perpetual trophy for the year, the team also received the U.S. Youth Soccer Fair Play Award. Game officials scored both teams at the end of each match on sportsmanship, respect, and promoting the values of youth soccer. The Virginia squad claimed both awards is a testament to the fact the girls were not only outstanding soccer players, but also great ambassadors for Virginia and youth sports.

The girls from the Chesterfield United U12 Elite team sent eight players to challenge Region I’s best in an 8 vs. 8 tournament. They competed in five matches over five days, in the midst of a July heat wave. Each girl played 320 minutes of soccer each, which is roughly the equivalent of an eight game season compressed into five days. The Region I win caps off an amazing year for this group of Chesterfield United girls.

“The 11 players on the team deserve tremendous credit for an incredible season. The eight players that travelled to West Virginia exceeded all expectations while playing their best soccer of the season. We are extremely proud of their determination to win and their great sportsmanship. The players totally believed in themselves, their teammates, their training, and our game strategies,” Coach Eric Faison said.