Dazzling return

Photos

COSTA MESA — For an entire week, the Newport Coast Elementary girls’ soccer team never gave up a goal in regulation.

But it still lost out on the ultimate prize at the ninth annual Daily Pilot Cup Sunday.

Killybrooke Elementary beat Newport Coast, 3-2, in a penalty-kick shootout forced by a scoreless 60 minutes of action in regulation during the fifth- and sixth-grade silver division championship.

“They gave up no goals,” said Newport Coast Coach Chris Iacobelli, finding it hard to believe his team came away with second place.

Just one goal is all Newport Coast needed to claim its first fifth- and sixth-grade silver division title before it was decided in penalties at the Costa Mesa Farm Complex.

The same can be said for Killybrooke, which hadn’t participated in the event since 2004.

Both teams manufactured one fantastic scoring opportunity in the second half. The defenses just clamped down on practically everything else.

For Newport Coast, Brooke Taylor stirred the crowd in the 41st minute. She hit the middle of the crossbar, watching it bounce out in disbelief.

For Killybrooke, Elaine Mora blasted a shot from the right side near the goal only to have it ricochet out after hitting the left post in the 57th minute.

“I was running up and down the sideline,” said Killybrooke Coach Sami Feinstein, thinking her team had just scored and was on its way to celebrating.

That was put on hold. Each team received five shots in the shootout, but Newport Coast went into it down two starters.

Iacobelli said he was without striker Reece Luebke and sweeper Erica Lynn-Green. Iacobelli said Luebke fractured her left forearm in the semifinal win earlier that day, and Lynn-Green left the final after 20 minutes because she was scheduled to be in a theatrical play.

With not having to jostle around on the field, Luebke entered the shootout. She’s used to scoring, Iacobelli saying Luebke recorded probably half the team’s goals during the tournament.

Luebke tied it up at 1-1 after Killybrooke’s Amanda Moore scored.

Jayme Krohnfeldt got a chance to put one through after playing goalkeeper for Killybrooke. She slipped one through the legs of keeper Marissa Iacobelli, giving Killybrooke a 2-1 lead.

Newport Coast responded, tying it on the next shot.

Guadalupe Dominguez put Killybrooke back on top, 3-2, with a boot to the right. This left Newport Coast with no choice but to make its next shot if it wanted to keep the shootout alive.

The shot went left, just inches away from the post. As the ball went out, Killybrooke rushed the field to celebrate.

“It’s crazy,” Moore described the atmosphere.

Moore, a defender, played at a high level. Nothing was going to get in her way.

“I got really tired and my asthma started kicking in,” she said. “But we just had to keep going. We worked together. That was a really difficult game for us.”

This was Killybrooke’s second match going into a shootout Sunday.

The first one was in the semifinals, where Feinstein said it took seven shots in the shootout to beat St. John.

And the player coming up big in that one was also Krohnfeldt as the keeper.

“It’s really nerve-racking,” Krohnfeldt said. “I just think that I have to like stop them.”

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at [email protected].