Tophat 17 Gold beats Tulsa Blitz 99 White for title
There were tears, there was celebration, but in the end, there was only one winner between Tulsa Blitz 99 White and Tophat 17 Gold (Ga.)
In the final minute of the game, Reagan Glisson pushed the ball toward Tulsa’s goal.
Emma Kurtz ran on the opposite side of the field and put herself in a position to receive the ball.
Even though Glisson had a decent shot at the goal, she passed it off to Kurtz, who was able to get the ball past the goalie and place it in the right-hand corner of the goal into the back of the net.
With a 1-0 victory, Tophat became the 2013 Under-14 U.S. Youth Soccer Region III champion.
“Luckily, I was the one to put it in the net and score,” Kurtz said. “Yeah I did (have confidence in myself); I felt like a rush of adrenaline, and I knew this was going to be it. I knew there was only a minute, and I didn’t really feel any pressure, but it felt good to get it in the net.
“I started crying when I scored. I know I’ll probably start crying again (when I get the trophy), it just felt great.”
The Atlanta-based team is moving on to the U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships, which will take place July 22-28 in Overland Park, Kan.
Glisson admitted that she thought the game was destined for overtime, with neither team giving the other one much leverage.
That wouldn’t be necessary, however.
As the Tulsa players and their coach walked off the field, one by one they walked up to Glisson and Kurtz to shake their hands, to congratulate them on the win and to wish them luck in nationals.
“I knew as soon it ended that we needed to go shake their hands, because they gave us an awesome game," Glisson said. "They helped us play that well.”
For Kurtz, she has no other option than to give her best: These are her last tournaments. Winning this tournament and moving forward means that much more to her as a result.
“I’m actually quitting next year, so this is like my last tournament, and I really wanted to do well and finish out the season,” the 14-year-old said. “It means a lot, ’cause last year we actually ended up losing in the semis in penalty kicks, and it was a really big disappointment.”
Kurtz said she just needed a break from soccer to see what she wanted to do in college and see what other sports she wanted to play.
She plays tennis along with soccer currently.
For now, she and Glisson are going to enjoy making it through the Region III Championships.
Kurtz said she can’t wait to get home, sleep in her own bed and see her cousins from Italy.
Glisson said she’s going to get a huge Coke and relax on the plane ride home.
In a little less than a month, though, their team will be heading to Kansas to play for the national championship, and neither girl was intimidated by playing on a bigger stage.
“Actually, I’m pretty confident that if we play our game, I think we’ll do pretty well,” Glisson said.
Said Kurtz: “I think we can do good.”