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Spring soccer event brings in thousands
First spring weekend brings thousands of soccer players and parents to region
Date published: 3/23/2009
BY PAMELA GOULD The first weekend of spring arrived with the sights and sounds that signal the start of the season of renewal. Pear and crabapple trees showed off their respective white and pink blossoms. Daffodils dotted roadsides with their warm yellow hues. And across the region, the cheers of thousands of parents filled the air as young soccer players kicked off their first outdoor season of the year. The Stafford Area Soccer Association's 16th annual St. Patrick's Day soccer tournament, held yesterday and Saturday, brought teams from as far away as Pennsylvania and North Carolina to fields from Woodbridge to Fredericksburg. For local parents, the weekend started what will be a weekly ritual for many--traveling weekend mornings to outdoor soccer matches or tournaments. Carey Schott of Stafford County, the wife of a recently retired Marine, knows the drill. "Once spring starts and once fall starts, [it begins]," she said. Yesterday she spent a chilly morning at Dixon Park in Fredericksburg cheering on son Ryan, a member of the Under-12 Stafford Area Soccer Association Strikers. There, as at the fields at Duff Green Park in southern Stafford, the competition was serious but civilized. "Let's go, Strikers," one parent yelled. "Let's do something amazing," another urged. "Don't give up," a third encouraged. Parents and siblings gathered on the sidelines in multiple layers of clothing yesterday morning. They brought along their coffee, snacks and fold-up chairs. By noon, layers were being removed as sunshine and even sunburns replaced an early chill. At Duff Green Park, the SASA Shooting Stars blue team proved true to their name. The Under-10 girls team relentlessly attacked the goal, scoring four times in both their third and championship games, but that didn't mean the cheering was one-sided. Parents just as enthusiastically cheered for the opposition's goalkeeper when she made a save as when one of their players scored. "Nice save, goalie," rang out a chorus of parents, who lined up along the sidelines in their chairs. More than 200 teams and about 3,000 players took part in the weekend event that serves as SASA's primary fundraiser. Teams for boys and girls ages 8 to 19 took part, with each team guaranteed to play three games. Proceeds go to scholarships for players who could not otherwise take part in the league. For Monica Davis, it was a great way to spend the first weekend of spring. She enjoyed spending time with the other Shooting Stars parents, cheering for her 9-year-old daughter, Jordy, and her teammates, and--to top it off--seeing the girls win the Under-10 championship. "It was great, and just to see the looks on the girls' faces was awesome," she said. Pamela Gould: 540/735-1972
Date published: 3/23/2009
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