U18 Girls All-Star Team Oh So Close to Repeating in Aurora
All-Star News 2010 Summer >> U18 Girls

The Markham Hornets Under-18 Girls House League All-Star team finished off their 2010 season by making their fourth straight tournament final and came as close as you can come to defending their title at the John Traganitis All-Star Tournament in Aurora on the September 18-19 week-end.

After being awarded a forfeit win over a Unionville team that could not field the minimum number of players, the Hornets kicked their game into high gear with a convincing 3-0 victory over Barrie Spirit. The game was only two minutes old when Natalie Cramarossa opened the scoring after dribbling through several defenders and slotting the ball home. Victoria Christofilos doubled the margin seven minutes later, pouncing on a bobble by the Barrie keeper for a gift-wrapped goal. Cramarossa put the game out of reach with a hard 25-yard free kick from the right side that was too hot to handle for the Barrie keeper. The rock-solid defense allowed very few chances, as goalkeeper Vanessa Santolin recorded the shut-out.

The third and final round robin game was a tough match against an aggressive Darlington team. The appropriately-named Devils earned a couple of yellow cards, but neither team could score, despite a penalty kick by Markham and numerous Darlington scoring opportunities that were thwarted by a much busier Santolin. The scoreless draw left the Hornets on top of the six-team U17/U18 division after Saturday’s round robin and set up a semi-final match-up with the Huntsville Strikers the next morning.

The Hornets carried the play to the Strikers right from the opening kick-off of the semi-final match, and Christofilos opened the scoring in the 11th minute when she broke through on a partial breakaway on the left side and left-footed a low shot to the far corner. Cramarossa provided an insurance marker halfway through the second half when she pounced on a rebound of a Michelle Addorisio free kick from the top of the penalty area. Santolin kept her tournament sheet clean, and the Hornets were on their way to a rematch with Darlington for the tournament championship.

The championship final was a hard-fought battle, with both teams picking up their share of yellow cards and the Darlington coach being ejected minutes after the opening kick-off. Leading up to this game, neither team had surrendered a goal throughout the tournament. This all changed 17 minutes into the first half as Darlington scored from a free kick at the top of the penalty area that was just beyond Santolin’s outstretched arms. The Hornets refused to give up. They gradually took over the momentum of the game and were awarded four corner kicks in a row late in the second half. On the fourth one, the ball was blocked and bounced back to Addorisio who lofted a shot from a very sharp angle that caught the far corner and tied the game with only five minutes remaining in regular time. Ten minutes of overtime did not settle anything, and the tournament championship came down to a penalty kick shoot-out. Markham led 1-0 after the first round, with Addorisio scoring and Santolin making a big save, but they fell behind 2-1 after three rounds. Subsequent goals by Rysha Schuler and Christofilos, along with a Darlington miss on their fifth shot sent the shoot-out to extra rounds. Emily Locker and Rosanna Tamburro traded goals with Darlington’s shooters, and the match was finally decided in the eighth round when Markham missed and Darlington scored to win the shoot-out 6-5. It was a heart-breaking way to lose a championship, but the girls should be very proud of their accomplishments this year – two tournament championships and finalists in the two other tournaments they entered.

Other members of this outstanding team were Becca Hood, Tori Hood, Jill Kooymans, Ashley Korey, Kristen McCulloch, Rachel Tam, and Sadie Vanier. The team was coached by Jerry Kooymans and Carmen and Anthony Addorisio and is sponsored by CIBC.

Last changed: Sep 25 2010 at 9:52 AM