THE MP United Football Club celebrated twice as hard on Saturday as its U12 and U15 teams went all the way to claim the championship in their respective divisions of the 2021 President’s Cup at the NMI Soccer Training Center.
In the U12 Division, MPU 2’s Riki Takahashi, Silva Keanu, Moshe Sikkel, Lillian Moroney, Richard Zhao, Mathew Peng, Landon Pudney, Landon Jordan, Stephen Yeom, Henry Yeom and David Peng worked as a team to overcome all obstacles throughout the double-elimination tournament.
MPU 2 first defeated Matansa Football Club 1-0 and then advanced to send TanHoldings Football Club to the losers bracket 2-0.
MPU 2 team continued to deliver as it triumphed over Shirley’s Football Club 2-0 to secure a seat in the final round.
Paire Football Club eventually made its way to the championship round against MPU 2 but not without putting in a lot of work first.
PFC fell into the pit early in the first round losing to MPU 1, 4-3, but that did not stop Paire from staging a comeback.
In the losers bracket, PFC had to face five opponents, first eliminating the Southern United Football Club 1-0 and then beating the Kanoa Football Club 3-0 as well as THFC 1, 3-2.
Paire was also victorious against MPU 1, 1-0, and scored its fifth win against SFC, 2-0, to reach the finals.
Although PFC fought hard, MPU 2 managed to maintain a steady output and ultimately triumph, 2-0, to win the U12 championship.
Undefeated, too
In the U15 division, MPU 1 had a similar journey: undefeated in the elimination rounds and victorious in the title match.
After advancing through the first two rounds by besting SUFC (1-0) and PFC (2-0), MPU 1 faced Kanoa FC, which was also undefeated at that point. MPU 1 triumphed 1-0 to secure a spot in the championship round.
Kanoa fought its way back to earn a rematch in the finale, but MPU 1 still ended victorious via penalty kicks, 3-2, to claim the U15 championship.
The MPU 1 players were Aubrey Castro, Fiona Regan, Stephanie Woo, Jack Raho, Kaithlyn Chavez, Cody Shimizu, Takeru Jim, Sean Park and Jun Jim.
An MPU 2 player battles for possession during a U12 Division game of the 2021 President’s Cup on Saturday at the NMI Soccer Training Center.
Photo by James F. Sablan Jr.
MPU 1 team members pose for a photo with their U15 championship medals.
Contributed photo
MPU 1’s Aubrey Castro saves the possession during the U15 Division championship game of the 2021 President’s Cup on Saturday at the NMI Soccer Training Center.
Contributed photo
MPU 2 team members pose for a photo with their U12 championship medals.
Contributed photo
