Marble Falls boys, girls soccer teams place second at tourneys
The Marble Falls High School boys soccer team placed second at the Stephenville Tournament on Jan. 17-18. The squad includes Chris Madere (front row, left), Chance Daniels, Nick Cano and Marky Marichilar; Ali Salinas (second row, left), Joaquin Ramirez, Jesse Arreguin, Carlos campos, Jimmy Fermin, Irvin Comacho, head coach Rick Hoover; Omar Corea (third row, left), Gaveno Tinajera, Erik Salgado, Chava Salazar, Asir Riojas, Balta Albarran and Sammy Gomez; assistant coach Jake Smith (back row, left), Alejandro Osornio, Juan Campos, Adolfo Galvan, Fernando Luna and assistant coach Chuck Woods. Courtesy photo
JENNIFER FIERRO • PICAYUNE STAFF
STEPHENVILLE — The Marble Falls High School boys soccer team finished second at the Stephenville Tournament on Jan. 17-18.
Mustangs head coach Rick Hoover has a simple explanation for the tournament outcome.
“Hard work,” he said. “The players are starting to believe in themselves. They want to win. They are passionate about soccer.”
In the championship, the Mustangs (6-2-1) lost 2-1 to Waco University, the defending state champions. Marble Falls had a 1-0 lead in the second half.
“I expected (us) to beat the No. 3 team in the state, and (we) almost did,” Hoover said. “Once the boys start expecting this, things will come together.”
The Mustangs defeated Weatherford white 8-0, Waco University white 3-0, Lorena 3-0 and Stephenville 3-0.
Marble Falls welcomes Copperas Cove at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 21 to Mustang Stadium, 2101 Mustang Drive.
jfierro@thepicayune.com
Marble Falls girls finish second at Bastrop Tournament
BASTROP — The Marble Falls High School girls soccer team placed second at the Bastrop Tournament on Jan. 16-18.
“(The) girls hurt to get so close and come up short, but we’re trying to get them to see big picture,” Marble Falls head coach Trey Young said. “We’ve improved from last year and even improved from last week’s third place (at the Winter Classic tournament). So we try to look at it as continued growth.”
The Lady Mustangs and Kennedale played to a 1-1 tie in the championship that went to second-round sudden-death penalty kicks. Kennedale edged Marble Falls for the championship.
“Thought we had them for sure,” Young said. “Skyler Noack played a great game.”
Marble Falls defeated Brenham in penalty kicks after the two squads played to a 1-1 tie in the semifinals.
“A well-played game,” Young said. “Both teams fought really hard.”
A 1-1 tie against Elgin allowed the Lady Mustangs to finish first in their bracket. Sophomore forward Macy Hoover scored a header off a rebound from the crossbar.
Marble Falls won its second game of the tournament, a 3-1 victory over Sealy, after beating Bastrop 2-1 to start pool play.
“Other positives are our mental and physical toughness,” Young said. “We fight hard. Also, I like that every girl contributes at different times, not just relying on one star.”
AGAINST KENNEDALE: Tournament Most Valuable Player – Shelbi Wyatt; offensive player of the tournament – Britney Deering; defensive player of the tournament – Megan Morgan; goals – Macy Hoover
AGAINST BRENHAM: Player of the game – goalie Kelly Copeland; goals – Hoover
AGAINST ELGIN: Player of the game – Deering; goals – Hoover
AGAINST SEALY: Offensive player of the game – Ana Rodriguez; defensive player of the game – Sessily Northam; goals – Deering, Emma Sharp, Wyatt on a free kick; assist – Marley Colbert
RECORDS: Marble Falls is 5-0-5.
UP NEXT: 7 p.m. Jan. 22, Marble Falls at Killeen Ellison, 909 Elms Road in Killeen