The Prince George Youth Soccer Association girls under-15 Kodiaks all-star squad wrapped up the Provincial B Cup tournament in Kelowna on Sunday with a 2-1 win over the Ladner Vipers of South Delta to claim the bronze medal.
Kodiaks coach Rod Auld said it was a well-deserved win after the team was relegated to the third-place game despite outplaying their opponents in Saturday's final round-robin contest.
"They went crazy," said Auld about the girls' reaction when the final whistle blew. "They worked so hard all weekend. We didn't get outplayed in any game. We were one goal away from playing in the gold-medal game and it was heartbreaking to lose that but they really picked it up for this game."
Saturday the Kodiaks fell 1-0 to the CMFSC Black Ice of Coquitlam.
Auld said it was a testament to the girls' character that they could move past the disappointment in not playing for gold to win the bronze medal.
The bronze-medal game was a back and forth affair in the first half with the Kodiaks and Vipers taking turns putting the pressure on. Jocelyn Forrest put the Kodiaks up 1-0 before the half.
"In the second half, we did some adjustments and started to really push," said Auld. "I think we were tiring the other team out and then [Forrest] scored the second goal. After that it was just a matter of time waiting for the final whistle to blow."
The Vipers broke the shutout with about two minutes to play.
In the tournament, the Kodiaks posted a 2-1-1 record and played well defensively, allowing only two goals in four games. Morgan Redding had two goals in the Kodiaks opening 3-0 win Thursday while Emily Holmes also had a goal in the tournament.
With the provincial bronze medal secured the Kodiaks are looking forward to their next challenge when they resume play this week in the Prince George Women's Soccer Association. In the spring session the U15 Kodiaks were 5-1 and tied for first place in Group B. In the summer session the Kodiaks will move to Group A.
"We were doing quite well so they moved us up," said Auld. "Now we're going to be pushed which we're looking forward to."
The Kodiaks return to the pitch Wednesday against Mountain Air Kettle Corn in their first Group A match at 6 p.m.
