Bethesda Internationals

29 Jul. '08. Down at the Hampton Roads Soccer Complex in VA Beach over the course of 4 days in the hot Virginia sun, the Internationals brought their A game with them in all 4 contests. The first game on Sat., 26 Jul., matched up the Internationals with the Indialantic Youth Brevard from FL. The first half play was controlled by Inter which took (8) shots on goal and setup (2) corner kick opportunities which were  all unsuccessful while committing just (2) fouls. Indialantic played aggressively committing (8) fouls while Inter’s strong defense held them to just (1) shot on goal. At about the (19) minute mark, after a mis-handled attempt to move the ball away from Inter’s goal area, the ball was collected by Indialantic and a clean shot was launched past Seth into the net for the socre and the half ended with Indialantic on top, 1-0. In the 2nd half, Inter continued to control play, although Indialantic’s defense limited Inter to just (4) shots on goal and (2) corner kicks. Inter stepped up its intensity and played more aggressively committing (11) fouls. Inter’s stingy defense held the Indialantic team to no shots taken and (1) unsuccessful corner kick while committing (13) fouls (including a YC shown to #4 for a hard foul). At about the (5) minute mark, Ebo launched a ball into the goal mouth where Ben timed his jump to head strike in the equalizer goal, and at about the (13) minute mark, Vitalis served a nice ball across in front of the goal line where Chris was in position to easily strike in the winning goal and the match ended, 2-1, Internationals.

In the 2nd match on Sun., 27 Jul., Inter faced the upstart TSF Academy Celtic team, NJ State Champ and Region I Regionals Semi-Finalist and recent Potomac Memorial Chesapeake 2008 Champion. Inter expected a tough match and was not disappointed by the play of the TSF team. The first half was even with both teams moving the ball up the field well and both defenses digging in. TSF’s defense held Inter to just (3) shots on goal which were unsuccessful and no corners while committing (6) fouls (including 2 offsides), while Inter’s defense held TSF to (4) shots on goal and (2) corners which were unsuccessful while committing no fouls, and the half ended scoreless. In the 2nd half, both teams continued their strong play but Inter’s defense kept the TSF team from launching any shots or setting up any corners and they committed (3) fouls (including a YC’s shown to #2 and #7 for hard fouls). Inter would launch (8) shots on goal and no corner kicks while committing (6) fouls (including 1 high kick and 1 handball). At about the (14) minute mark, Chris made a nice pass to Ebo who sent a hard shot into the net for the lead goal. And, at about the (28) minute mark Vitalis rcvd a pass on the left and sent a blast into the net to put Inter up, 2-0. TSF continued to play hard and determined but Inter’s vaunted defense denied them any opportunity to finish. Late in the 2nd half at about the (36) minute mark, Ebo sent a ball upfield to Marcel who collected the ball behind the defenders,1v1 on the GK and sent a strike into the net to put Inter up, 3-0. Just two minutes later at the (38) minute mark, Marcel rcvd another ball upfield again behind defenders and 1v1 on the GK to send another strike into the net and the match ended shortly thereafter, 4-0, Inter.

In the 3rd match on Mon., 28 Jul, Inter would match up against the Pasco Jr. Stallions from NJ. Inter controlled play throughout the match, and in the 1st half, Inter held Pasco to no scoring opportunities while they committed (5) fouls. Inter took (4) shots on goal and set up (3) corner kicks while committing (3) fouls. At about the (5) minute mark, Philip sent a pass over to Matt on the left who then sent the ball up field to Chris who then finished a shot to put Inter up, 1-0. At about the (24) minute mark, Ebo sent a nice pass upfield to Nate H. who then moved the ball into scoring position to finish Inter’s 2nd goal. And, at the (36) minute mark a DK ball was launched by (?) into the box where Marcel timed his jump up to head strike in the 3rd goal of the half. In the 2nd half, the Pasco team continued its aggressive play committing (4) fouls and a YC shown to ? for a hard foul. Inter continued to create numerous scoring opportunities with a whopping (19) shots take on goal and (2) corner kicks while committing (2) fouls (including 1 offsides). At about the 1st minute of the 2nd half, a DK was launched by ? from about (24) yards out on the right into the box where Ben was in position to knock in the goal. Just one minute later, Nate H. sent a nice  pass upfield to Chris who sent a shot into the net ; and, at the (36) minute mark, Roque launched a corner kick into the box where Nat E. was in position to strike in the goal and the match ended, 6-0, Inter.

In the final/4th match on Tue., 29 Jul., Inter played the Central Penn Alliance team from PA-E. Again, Inter controlled play for most of the match and its strong defense held the Penn team to just (2) shots on goal in the 1st which were unsuccessful while committing a single foul. Inter would take (6) shots on goal and setup (2) corner kicks while committing (6) fouls (including 3 offsides and 1 handball). At about the 30th minute, Ben F. sent a ball upfield to Chris who fired a shot into the net to put Inter up at the half, 1-0. In the 2nd half, Inter’s stingy defense continued to play strong holding the Penn team to just (1) shot taken and (1) CK setup which were both unsuccessful while committing (4) fouls (including a YC shown to #7 for a hard foul). Inter launched (10) shots on goal and setup (3) corner kick opportunities while committing (4) fouls (including 3 offsides and a YC shown to Fabio for a hard foul). At about the (17) minute mark, Chris collected a passed ball and fired a blast into the net to put Inter up, 2-0. And, at the (23) minute mark, Matt sent a ball upfield to Chris who finished Inter’s 3rd goal. At about the (34) minute mark, Fabio sent a DK into the goal area on the left where Vitalis collected the ball and fired in the shot and the match ended several minutes later, 4-0, Inter.