Quicksilver, a Santa Barbara AYSO U14 girls soccer team, finished second in the AYSO State Championships held in Davis on Saturday.
The team, which began its season locally in August, represented Santa Barbara in the Area 10W playoffs in Camarillo in December and advanced through those playoffs to the Section 10 playoffs in Bakersfield in February.
Playing a grueling schedule in Bakersfield of five games in two days, the team won the Section 10 championships despite having no subs for the first three games and only one sub for the semifinals and finals.
Their first-place finish among more than 350 teams allowed them to advance to the Final Four in the state on Saturday. The four teams in Davis represented the best from among more than 1,000 U14 girls teams in the state.
Again with no subs, the iron women beat a tough Millbrae team 2-0 in the morning semifinals but were overcome in the finals 0-3 by an outstanding team from Huntington Park. In its 26th game, Quicksilver had allowed only 12 goals all season prior to the finals and had allowed as many as two goals on only two occasions, while scoring a total of 57.
“Team play was certainly the key to our season,” said Coach Andy Gersoff, who emphasized the remarkable bonding, trust and teamwork among the girls that had served as the foundation for their incredibly successful season. “It was a delight to watch the communications, coverage and passing among every girl on the team. The girls, the coaches and the parents all realized what a special group of players had come together to produce this stellar eight-month effort.”
Members of the team included Carleigh Ornelas, Amanda Gersoff, Kinsey Headley, Nathalie Negrete, Carolyn Weisman, Alexa Zampese, Jaime Schuyler, Deryn Gersoff, Samantha Lopez, Aaliyah Vega, Kenna Reyner, Melanie Miller and Emma Wagner.
Coach Gersoff partnered in the effort with Assistant Coach Joaquin Ornelas. The team also received outstanding support from parents, grandparents and friends, all of whom exhibited great sportsmanship.
In addition, Quicksilver’s success was made possible by the incredible volunteer efforts of an untold number of Santa Barbara AYSO volunteers, who work together to facilitate the play each year of approximately 3,000 youngsters in the Santa Barbara-Goleta-Montecito area.
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