Besides the skill and talent of the players the success of the Yorkton United U16 girls' soccer team this season has to be attributed in large measure to coaching, in this case, head coach Afredo Bermudez who has racked up an impressive list of wins over the years.
This year the provincial indoor championship in Saskatoon crowned a very successful season which saw the girls claim four gold medals, one in each major tournament they entered.
In Saskatoon the York-ton United U16 girls swept to a Provincial Division 2 indoor title.
The Yorkton U16s defeated the Tisdale Tornadoes 5-0 in their first game of the tournament. Rita Fetsch led the scoring with three goals while Kristen Jonassen and Canyon Desjarlais each added a goal.
Game 2 saw another shutout win as Yorkton claimed a 4-0 victory over Regina Unidad. Fetsch led the way with a pair of goals. Kristen Jonassen and Kendra Varjassy scored a goal apiece.
Yorkton tied a strong Prince Albert Celtic squad 1-1 with Fetsch scoring the game tying goal. As the game could not be left to end in a tie, Yorkton was awarded the win on a coin toss to place first in the pool and advance to the semifinal match.
In the semi final match United defeated the Hum-boldt Hurricanes 2-0 with a pair of goals scored by Fetsch to claim a berth in the final.
The Yorkton girls won the championship over the runners-up Lloyd-min-ster Rustlers by a score of 4-1 in the tournament final. Fetsch and Jonassen wrapped up a phenomenal weekend with a pair of goals each.
Yorkton United keeper Edie Schramm recorded three shutouts the U16 squad.
Bermudez says he's proud of the performance of his team which was made up of both Under 14 and Under 16 girls. "Everybody did their part," he says.
He singles out Fetsch as the team's top scorer at every tournament which the girls won. "Other coaches didn't know what to do with her. I was glad to have her on my team," Bermu-dez reports.
He points out that the team's wins were a team effort. Right from the keeper forward through the defenders, midfielders and forwards, all contributed to the team's successful season.
This girls completed the season winning gold in all four tournaments they entered this year. Their overall season record was 14 wins, one loss, and two ties. They scored 65 goals against opposing team while allowing only 11 goals against.
The United U16 girls team also won the Fair Play Award for the most sportsmanlike team at provincials which was voted on by the tournament officials.
With the indoor season completed, the team will continue to train until the outdoor soccer season opens.
Bermudez says it was an honor to coach the team. Season's like this one don't happen too often, he notes. "This has been our season," he sums up.
Looking ahead to the outdoor season, Bermu-dez is fairly confident that the team, with the same players, should have an equally successful summer.
