The Cincinnati Cup came to a close on Sunday, ending the three-day soccer showcase that took place over Memorial Day weekend at Voice of America Metro Park. Fewer matches were played on Sunday (only three time-slots available for teams to participate in), but some clubs and key players stood out in their final games before heading for home.

In a U17 boys match, Schwaben Athletic Nationals (Ill.) pounded the Burlington Youth Burlington Bayhawks (Burlington, Canada) by a score of 5-1. Nick Janulis of Schwaben had a hat trick in the first half and goalkeeper Daniel Grabowski staved off a crucial penalty kick from Burlington early in the match. The game was chippy throughout, with nine total cards being distributed by the head referee. Two of the cards were red and were both given to the Bayhawks. Noah Bowen, one of Burlington’s top players, was ejected from the match in the second half after taunting and getting too physical with some Schwaben players. Bowen was even heard saying “Stay down!” to Grabowski after he and the keeper collided for a 50-50 ball out of the box. Teammate Mohamed Hassan, a midfielder, was also ejected from the game for his physical play.

The Tennessee United TUSC ’02 and Victory Express (Penn.) came to a draw in their U14 match after a late goal by Tennessee United. With seconds to go, Victory Express gave up the equalizer after a scramble for the ball occurred in its box. Despite the draw, Victory Express played well, with the midfielder/forward pair Gavin Benson and Italo Deluca giving fits to Tennessee United virtually all game. The two displayed a quick pace when playing towards the ball, and are exceptionally tall for their age. On the flip side, Coy Skinner and Carson Tye played fine defense for Tennessee, preserving their team’s chance at securing the tie.

In one of the girls U17 matches, Cincinnati West CWSC United 96/97 put on a scoring clinic against Knoxville Football 98 Crush Rowdies, shutting them out in the process to a score of 4-0. Cincinnati West attacked the Crush Rowdies early and often, keeping the pressure on Knoxville’s defense throughout. Cassidy Hatfield and Allie Schindler, two forwards for Cincinnati, performed well in the win, scoring a goal apiece. Hatfield displayed precision in both her passing and shooting, getting an assist for the first goal of the match before scoring one of her own.

The other U17 girls match during Sunday’s final timeslot featured Sporting Indiana FC SIFC98 winning 4-2 against Victory Express (Penn.) thanks to two consecutive Sporting Indiana goals in the second half. Morgan Troutman and Jordan Moore capitalized on Victory Express’ poor midfield play, breaking free often for their setup shots. Wide forward Peyton Sadler played well too, considering she had a significant shoulder injury the entire match (cradled her arm in a sling position without bandages on it). Sadler was used to lob balls in the box for her teammates, and was accurate in doing so. Alena Poljar and Kyla Walkins of Victory Express tried to make up for their team’s poor defense, but their goals weren’t enough to hold on to the win.

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