Striker U12 girls go undefeated at United Cup

SANDPOINT — The Sandpoint Strikers U12 girls traveled to Beaverton, Ore., on Friday for the United Cup Tournament over Father’s Day weekend where they refused to be defeated.

In their first game against SSC Freedom, Strikers found themselves up 2-0 at half. Freedom rallied back in the second half to tie the game at 2-2. In the dying minutes of the game, Kayla Inman slotted her third near-post goal of the game, earning her a hat trick and the game winning goal.

The morning game on Saturday saw two evenly matched teams and a 0-0 draw against Westside Timbers. This placed the Strikers in a must-win situation on Saturday afternoon against FCSC Nemesis to earn their shot at the semi-final.

The Strikers held strong to the challenge, scoring five goals — Evelyn Webster and Madison Wyman each scored, and Kayla Inman nabbed her second hat trick for the tournament. To get into the semi-final, Strikers needed a little help from THUSC Silver, who had to lose or draw for Strikers to advance on points. Unfortunately for the Strikers, Silver won 7-0 leaving Strikers out of semi-finals by one tournament point. This placed Strikers into the 5th-6th place game.

The Strikers again came out to prove themselves, beating FC Portland 3-1. Scoring in this game was Riley Walkington, Kayla Inman and Jenna Matier. Leading our defense in the goal over the weekend was Shea Kilpatrick and Madison Wyman, who shared the time. Holding the back line all weekend was Yeo Yarnell, Mya Darling and Grace Hicks. All three played every minute. Midfield was anchored in the middle by Riley Walkington, Tori Hewitt and Addi House. Playing outside midfield was Chloe Stevens, Madison Wyman and Morgan Wohllaib. Forwards included Kayla Inman, Jenna Matier, Aly Corbridge, Mason White and Evelyn Webster.

The team was coached by Alan Brinkmeier, who is thrilled with the girls’ accomplishment.

A Kick in the Grass is a coach-submitted column that runs on Thursdays during soccer season in the Daily Bee.