West Pines United U13 Girls Advance to Fla State Cup Final Four

4-19-09

West Pines United FC 95/96 have advanced to the 2009 Florida State Cup
Final Four to be held over the weekend of May, 16/17 in Wellington, Fla.

West Pines journey began in Naples in the first round where the format was
group play where both the group champion and finalist would receive automatic
bids to the Round of Sixteen. West Pines opening match was against Indianlantic
which resulted in a 4 - 0 victory. Later that afternoon, West Pines squared off
against Hillsboro County United (HCU) and at the end of regulation, the teams
had battled to scoreless 0 - 0 draw. This result now set the stage for their last
match of group play. West Pines knowing that a victory by a certain margin
would reward them as group champions, took the field and produced the desired result by defeating Team Boca by the scoreline of 2 - 0.

Next up for the West Pines journey was in Hialeah for the Round of Sixteen where the format had now changed to single elimination. West Pines opening match was against Melbourne Tsunami in which they were victorious with a score of 6 - 0. West Pines then moved onto the Round of Eight and found themselves pitted against Braden River with both teams very well aware of the fact that the winning side would book themselves a ticket to next month's Final Four. Upon the referee's final whistle of regulation time, this pressure-packed quarterfinal match still stood even at 0 - 0. This scoreline left both teams with the daunting task of facing the overtime period and the realization that penalty kicks could eventually decide today's outcome. After two scoreless overtime periods, both sides headed to the center-circle to begin the penalty kick shootout. Braden River shot first and converted.

West Pines United's Mya Goodman, who had been robbed of the potential game-winner by a spectacular diving save from Braden River's goalkeeper from the very same penalty mark with ten minutes left in regulation, stepped up to draw her team even. Undaunted, her shot found the far corner side netting. Round two begins at 1 - 1. Braden River's second shot was successfully converted. West Pines United's Melanie Monteagudo then faced the same responsibility of having to score to draw her team even. Her shot was placed calmly into the corner of the net. Round three begins at 2 - 2. West Pines United's goalkeeper, Jennifer Ocampo, determined not to be outdone by her counterpart, acrobatically dove to deflect away the Braden River penalty kick. This set the table for West Pines United's Bridget Callahan's opportunity to put her side ahead in this intense penalty kick shootout. Her well taken shot found the corner of the net. Round four begins with West Pines 3 -Braden River 2. Braden River then converts their next penalty kick. West Pines United's Inbar Cohen then faced the same situation as last round, with the score tied and the chance to put her side ahead, her wonderfully placed shot found the back of the net. Round five begins at West Pines 4 - Braden River 3. After it had become clearly evident that Braden River's last attempt had rolled agonizingly wide
of the post, West Pines United erupted into celebration knowing that they had
advanced to the Final Four.

West Pines United FC 95/96 is the #3 ranked team in the State of Florida. The
team now readies themselves for the semifinal match against East Lake on May
16, 2009 in Wellington. This much anticipated match will see the Southern and
Northern Division Champions and the only two undefeated teams in the recently
concluded Florida State League finally meeting for the first time this season. For
additional info on this team or info on open tryouts for the upcoming USL Super
Y-League, please visit the club's website @ www.westpinesunited.org

This talented team consists of Bridget Callahan, Natalia Chavarria, Inbar Cohen,
Alexandra Fernandez, Ariana Fontenot, Tabatha Gonzalez, Mya Goodman,
Melanie Lane, Guiselle Melendez, Melanie Monteagudo, Cidney Moscovitch,
Jennifer Ocampo, Victoria Pineda, Alessandra Salazar and Carissa Sanchez.
Head Coach Todd Goodman and Assistant Coach Robert Salazar.