Three teams top standings as Tier 1 season winds down

BY JOHN DECOSTE

jdecoste@kentvilleadvertiser.ca

NovaNewsNow.com

Three Valley United Tier 1 soccer teams – the U-18 boys and girls and U-16 girls – all remain comfortably atop their divisions standings entering NSSL play this weekend.

The U-18 boys had a record of 9-0-3 for 30 points and remained eight points ahead of second-place City 18s despite playing to a scoreless draw with the City squad Feb. 17.

Valley’s Andrew MacRae earned his league-leading eighth shutout.

After playing Highland this weekend at the indoor facility in Stellarton, the U-18 boys are scheduled to wrap up their regular season at home Sunday, March 2 at 10 a.m. before moving on to the playoffs.

The Valley U-18 girls improved to 10-0-1 on the season, good for a seven-point lead over runner-up Halifax County, with a resounding 8-0 win over Highland Feb. 17.

Robyn McNeill and Lauren Landry had two goals each, with single markers by Vanessa McDow, Katelyn McCluskey, Acacia Dunphy and Kailey Bower. Danielle Bennicke and Jillian Cochrane shared the shutout.

After hosting Dunbrack this Sunday, the U-18 girls have two regular season games remaining: March 2 at noon and March 4 at 7 p.m., before moving on to the playoffs.

The U-16 girls improved to 13-1 with their 11th straight win, 2-0 over Sackville Feb. 16. Chantal Landry had both Valley goals, giving her a league-leading 10 on the season.

After hosting Halifax City this weekend, the U-16 girls are scheduled to wrap up their regular season March 2 at 10 a.m. before moving on to the playoffs as the top seed.

Entering play this weekend, Valley had a 13-point lead over Halifax County and Scotia, who were tied for second place with 26 points, and could not be caught.

Back on winning track

The Valley U-16 boys got back on the winning track with a 2-0 shutout of Highland Feb. 17. Robert Lannan and Chris Potter had the goals and Arthur Ferguson earned his fifth shutout of the season.

Entering action this weekend, the U-16 boys stood fourth in their division with a 7-5-1 record for 22 points. First-place Halifax County had 29 points, Dunbrack 27 and Dartmouth United 26, with Highland fifth with 20 points and having played one more game than Valley. The top four teams advance to the post-season.

The Valley U-14 girls improved to 11-2-3 for 36 points, solidly in third place in their division, with a 3-1 victory over Halifax City. Emilie Lake had two goals, giving her a team-high 11 goals on the season, and Jillian Murphy had the other goal.

With an 11-point lead on fourth-place Sackville entering play this weekend and just one additional regular season game remaining (March 1 at 1p.m.), the Valley U-14 girls weren’t likely to finish any lower than third.

However, they could still finish higher than third given they were just two points behind first-place Scotia and one behind second-place Halifax County, though both those teams did have a game in hand.

The Valley U-14 boys didn’t play Feb. 16-17 and remained second in their division entering play this weekend with a 9-2-2 record for 29 points.

Mahone Bay was first with 30 points, but had played 15 games to Valley’s 13. Scotia was third with 28 points and Halifax County fourth with 26, with both those teams having played 14 games.

After hosting Halifax County this Saturday, Valley is scheduled to wrap up its regular season wih a pair of games next weekend, hosting Mahone Bay Saturday at 3 p.m. before traveling to Truro for a game with last-place Highland Sunday, also at 3 p.m.