Gottschee Columbus Day Tourney Action

Blau Weiss teams played in various tournaments over the Columbus Day Weekend with most squads playing in an older age bracket.

Out in Syosset, Long Island, the U8A took second place in the U9 Division after winning four and losing one. Gottschee opened with a 3-1 loss to West Hempstead but then reeled off four consecutive victories, versus South Huntington 7-0, RVC 5-0, Plainview/Old Bethpage 6-2, and New Hyde Park 3-0.

The U9A were down in Brooklyn for the Brooklyn Italians Tournament in the U10 grouping. Gottschee played well but lost all three matches, against Downtown United SC 10-4, Stronghold, N.J. 5-1, and Farmingdale 3-1.

In the same competition Gottschee’s U9B played in the U9A group and were also denied any victories, falling to Glen Rock, N.J. 6-2, Brentwood 5-0, and Islas Malvinas 5- 0.

The U10A played up in the U11 bracket and made it to the finals where they were bested by Garden City Park 3-1 and had to settle for second place.

Gottschee began with a 2-2 tie against Barboncito with second half goals scored by Carlo Ritaccio and Manny Leon. In the second match, Garden City Park used their superior size and speed to shutout Blau Weiss 2-0. In the last match of qualification, Gottschee turned it on and drubbed GJOA 7-0 and reached the playoffs.

The semifinal was a thriller against Silver Lake with the boys getting by 3-2. Carlo Ritaccio and JP Rodriguez struck first period goals to match Silver Lake and the teams were tied at the half. In the second period Dan Zvi scored the game winner after beating the last man. The win set up the re-match with Garden City Park which Blau Weiss lost. Elvin Lekperic scored the lone goal for Gottschee.

In the U11 Division the U11A team won one and lost two and didn’t make it out of qualifiers. The first game was against Downtown United SC which DUSC won 3-1. Brian Goncalves scored for BW. Long Island Football Club was next up and they beat Gottschee 4-1, with Lukas Arzan scoring to avoid the shutout. The last game was against Stronghold, NJ and Gottschee nipped them 2-1 on two goals by Arzan.

It was a second place finish for the U12A at the Brooklyn Italians Tournament. Gottschee came through qualification 3-0 after wins over Jericho 2-0 on shots by Niko Buric(2), HBC Barcelona 2-0 with goals by Khalid DeFuentes and Erik Freire, and Manhattan SC 2-1. In the Manhattan match, it was Manhattan who took the initial lead after a scoreless first half 1-0. Midway through the second period Thomas Conan equalized for Gottschee with a rip to the back of the net. Andro Garcia Economides scored the game winner off a feed from Khalid DeFuentes to get the team into the semis.

Gottschee took the first playoff game 1-0, with the lone goal an early strike by Frances Cole. The final was against Dix Hills and Gottschee ran out of steam and were rolled over by Dix Hills 5-0.

Playing a year up, the U12 Celtic posted a 2-0-1 record and just missed the playoffs. The opener was against SJV of New Jersey who posed no problem for Blau Weiss and they won easily, 7-0. Blau Weiss ran in to some bad luck in the second match, dominating possession but being undone by a PK, a deflection, and a late counter-attack and lost 3-0. In the final the boys blanked Plainview/Old Bethpage 3-0 on strikes by Tim Weah, Connor McGlynn, and Luis Kaba.

Out in East Pennsylvania the U14 Academy team won two and tied one. The first game was against the U15 Richmond Strikers and the teams played to a 2-2 tie. Richmond took a 1-0 lead in the first half and led into the break. Gottschee pulled level after play resumed on a shot by Anthony Viteri. Richmond answered to make it 2-1 but just before time, Blau Weiss’ Ko Kunita tied it again.

Gottschee shutout South Central Connecticut in the second game 2-0 on goals by Jeremy Fedus and Bradley Nestor. Gottschee pured it on in the last match against Seacoast, NH, winning handily 6-2. Seacoast scored early but Gottschee notched a pair before halftime to lead 2-1. In the second period the boys broke things open with strikes by Jesus Sanmartin (2), Jeremy Fedus, and Anthony Magliocco. Seacoast scored one more but it was way too little, too late.

The U14 Pre-Academy played at the Brooklyn Italians Tournament, winning one and losing two. In a rough start, Gottschee fell to Bayside 4-0. The boys recovered in the second game and edged Kosmos 3-2. Goals by Billy Athanopoulos, Cologero Curcuru, and an own goal by Kosmos powered the win. In the third game, Gottschee lost to Armenia of Ossining 3-1. Cologero Curcuru scored for BW.

The girls were also active over the weekend, with the U10’s up in Westchester for their first ever tournament. The girls lost all three games against Danbury 6-1, Farmingdale4- 1, and Scarsdale 4-1.

The U11 Girls were in West Hempstead where they won two and lost two. Blau Weiss defeated Larchmont 2-1 and Syosset 4-1. They lost to East Meadow 7-1 and Middle Path 2-1.

Back up in Westchester, the U12’s won one and lost two. Gottschee took on Lewisboro in the first match and lost 3-0. They bounced back against OG United in the second game 7-0, but then were nipped in the last 1-0 by Farmingdale.