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U19 Event
Daniel Cranston was the big winner on a day that saw a record 30 youth players competing. Daniel completed a 2-0 victory over Stuart Russell in the Final. Daniel and Stuart had both complained of not feeling well during the day. This did not prevent them from playing a high quality final. Earlier Stuart had defeated Nick Trainer 2-0 in the semi finals, and Daniel defeated Michael Tillman 2-2 (1-0 on shots) in a superb game. All the adult players present commented on the high standard of play from these top youngsters.
A feature of the quarter finals was the presence of three current 6th graders; Kasper Nilsson, Aryan Siahpoushan, and Matt Steinmuller. Confirming the belief of Paul Eyes that standards of play are rising, and that the current younger players are ahead of their predecessors.
The 4 top seeds all progressed to the final four. The only other official seed – Kevin Bao - did not progress out of the group phase as he went out to shock defeats by David Cranston (only 9 years old) and the improving Jay Richardson.
The round of 16 featured a great game between Kasper Nilsson and David Cranston (9 year old brother of Daniel), with Kasper going through on shots, after a 0-0 after extra time.
In the Mary Jane (consolation) Final, Conner Ryan beat Sung Hoon 2-1
In non-ASA events, Stuart Russell won the school Patapsco Cup 1-0 over Michael Tillman. Aryan Siahpoushan won the 6th grade championship, and Jay Richardson won the 7th grade.
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Open Event
Thirteen players made up the field on the day. Group C - aka the “Group of Death - saw Eddie Davidson and Randy Grice perish. Ed Morgans gained a superb 1-0 victory over long time nemesis Paul Eyes, to secure second place in the group. Eyes had earlier defeated US world cup representative Mike Benkart 1-0 to secure top spot in this tough group.
In Group A Zach Walker and Patrick Sheridan comfortably progressed. Sadly, Patrick had to forfeit his quarter final as he had to leave for a hockey game. Group B was won by Massimo Conturso, with Keith Constable and Jeff Davidson being separated for 2nd and 3rd by goal difference. Consolation for Davidson was provided by his safe passage to the next round as the best 3rd place finisher from Group A and B.
The knockout phase held few surprises. Zach Walker and Massimo Conturso renewed their final rivalry. Going into the tournament Zach had been struggling for form in the two weeks running up to the event. He came good at the right time though, with all his games resulting in comprehensive victories. It had looked so promising going into the final game for Massimo Conturso, as he reached the final via a 3-0 demolition of Paul Eyes in the semi finals. This was the fifth final of the season for Conturso, and his fifth loss. An early goal by Walker steadied the defending champion, and he controlled the game from that point.
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As Aryan Siahpoushan left the hall, he was getting information about the upcoming May 6/7th FISTF event. His father brought up the concern that there may be a conflict with Aryan’s soccer schedule, to which Aryan replied "but this is way better than soccer!"
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