2023 U9/U10 #NorCalStateCup State Division Finals Recap

It was a wild and passionate weekend of soccer as 85 different divisions were decided at the U9/U10 NorCal Premier Soccer State Cup Finals Weekend in Ripon and Lathrop this past Saturday and Sunday.

However, in each age group, there can only be one State Division champion and all four State titles decided during the weekend went down to the wire.

Each team that captured the championship did so by just a solitary goal in tight matches that truly could have gone either way.

When the dust settled, CV Futbol Academy came out as the big winner in the competition, capturing the U9 Boys and U10 Girls titles, while also finishing second in the U10 Boys division.

Rounding out the champions were Mustang SC and ECFC Salinas who captured the U9 Girls and U10 Boys titles, respectively.

Finishing as runners up were Vally Surf (U9 Boys), MVLA (U9 Girls), and Santa Clara Sporting (U10 Girls).

Here are your State Division final recaps:

Saturday

U9 Girls State Final
11/11	Santa Clara Sporting		2-3		CV Futbol Academy
In a back and forth game between two evenly matched teams, CV Futbol Academy prevailed 3-2 over Santa Clara Sporting thanks to three moments of brilliance from Laurete Ceja. The center forward scored three goals for CV Futbol Academy, the last of which came after winning the ball in the Santa Clara Sporting defensive third and smashing home a ball to the near post. Sporting tried until the final minute to equalize but couldn't do so despite still being in the game thanks to strikes from Emani-Cataleya Leanos and Gabriella Orozco-Diaz.

U10 Boys State Final
11/11	CV Futbol Academy		2-3		ECFC Salinas
ECFC Salinas scored three goals in the first 13 minutes of the game before holding on late to defeat CV Futbol Academy via a 3-2 scoreline. Julian Garcia-Rivera opened the scoring in just the second minute before Damian Rosiles doubled the ECFC advantage a minute later. Thiago Guido then made it 3-0 for Salinas in the 13th minute thanks to a solidly struck free kick. However, in the second half, CV Futbol Academy fought back and were rewarded with a goal when Sergio Valencia struck on a solo effort in the 37th minute. Oliver Madrigal then scored to make it 3-2, but his goal came in the 50th minute of the match and was the last kick of the game.

Sunday

U9 Boys State Final
11/12	CV Futbol Academy		2-1		Valley Surf
An early near post goal from Cristiano Vega put CV Futbol Academy up 1-0 over Valley Surf, a lead that they would hold for much of the game. After taking the lead, CV then hit the crossbar and forced a tough save from the Surf keeper to take things into halftime up a goal. Late in the match, Alexander Ramos Ahumada leveled the scoreline to buy his side some time, but CV kept sending numbers forward. After hitting the woodwork again, CV were awarded a free kick deep into the match. Richard Pena stepped up and buried his second goal of the match from well outside the box to give his side the victory.

U10 Girls State Final
11/12	Mustang SC		4-3		MVLA
In an absolutely wild game in which a player bagged a brace for each side, Mustang SC prevailed over their Bay Area rivals in MVLA via a 4-3 scoreline to capture the U10 Girls State Cup title. Macie Mitchell opened up the scoring for MVLA in just the 10th minute before a strike from Mustang's Alivia Vella drew the game level just before the break. In the second half Tatum Johnson and Jenna Norris both hit the back of the net as Mustang quickly jumped to a 3-1 advantage. However MVLA's Gia Scarpace pulled a goal back two minutes after the third Mustang goal to make it a game again. Johnson then struck in the 42nd minute to make it 4-2 for Mustang before Scarpace grabbed her second goal of the match with two minutes to go. That's where the goalfest ended, though, as Mustang ultimately prevailed.