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The Hays Soccer Club’s U12 Thunder went 3-0-1 at the fifth annual Next Gen Invitational presented by Sporting Kansas City. The Thunder started tournament play against Sporting Columbia White early Saturday morning. Late in the first half, Joey Fisher scored his first goal of the tournament putting Thunder up 1-0. Shortly after, Sporting Columbia answered with a goal of their own ending the first half tied 1-1. Fisher came out of the half strong by scoring back-to-back goals early in the second half. Sporting KC Columbia turned the tables to answer with back-to-back goals of their own late in the second half ending the match in a 3-3 tie. The match saw shots on goal from Dalton Herrman(1), Joey Fisher(4), and Laiken Desaire(1). Logan Cunningham was the sole keeper for the match and ended with 7 saves.
For the second match on Saturday Thunder faced another Sporting KC club team Sporting Iowa Silver. With the tie from the morning match fresh on their mind, Thunder came out strong in the first half with six shots on goal from six different Thunder players. However, no one was able to find the back of the net leaving the first half scoreless. Thunder couldn’t be denied in the second half with an early score from Stryker Berry followed by another Fisher goal with an assist from Berry. Still early in the first half, Col Lonsdale assisted a Logan Cunningham Goal bringing the score to 3-0. Fisher scored again from another Berry assist then provided Dalton Herrman with an assist bringing the score to 5-0 midway through the second half. Mason Zimmerman got into the action with a long goal from a free kick with Lonsdale closing out the route with a goal of his own ending the match 7-0. The match saw shots on goal from Dalton Herrman(2), Stryker Berry(2), Joey Fisher(3), Logan Cunningham(2), Mason Zimmerman(1), Col Lonsdale(1), Emery Zimmerman(1), Laiken Desaire(1), and Nicholas Penka(1). Jace Herbers was the sole keeper in the match and ended the shutout with 2 saves.
Thunder drew the early Sunday morning match this time against Sporting Iowa Grey. The cold temperatures and 8AM game time didn’t slow down Thunder. Joey Fisher started off the first half with an early goal followed by a goal from Dalton Herrman, assisted by Stryker Berry. The start of the second half saw a barrage of shots from Thunder with Fisher finding the back of the net from a Herrman assist. Sporting Iowa got on the board with a goal of their own bringing the score to 3-1. Fisher answered back with another goal effectively shutting down any chance of a Sporting rally. Sporting did pick up a late goal with the match ending 4-2. The match saw shots on goal from Dalton Herrman(5), Stryker Berry(1), Noah DeBay(1), Joey Fisher(5), Emery Zimmerman(1), and Preston Dinkel(1). Logan Cunningham was the sole keeper in the match and ended with 3 key saves.
With a 2-0-1 record in their pool Thunder secured a spot in the championship match against undefeated Sporting Nebraska FC – Lincoln. Match time conditions proved to be colder than the early game but that didn’t slow down Thunder. The boys came out strong and took the early advantage by applying pressure throughout the start of the first half. Sporting Nebraska answered by not only defending the early Thunder attacks but also applying pressure back. Starting defenders Mason Zimmerman, Noah DeBay, and Hudson Sultzer rose to the challenge against very good Sporting attacks and turned this match into a defensive battle. Midway into the second half Thunder defense seemed to wear down Sporting’s attacking force turning the tides back in Thunder’s favor. After a few near-miss shots on goal by Thunder, it seemed this match was going into penalty kicks until Dalton Herrman made the game-winning goal in the 47th minute. The match saw shots on goal from Dalton Herrman(1), Stryker Berry(1), Logan Cunningham(3), and Emery Zimmerman(2. Jace Herbers was the sole keeper in the match with 3 saves.
With this first-place finish at Kansas City, the Hays Thunder move to 17-4-2 for the 2022-2023 season in six tournaments taking home gold medals from Wichita Open (Wichita), Fall Kickoff Challenge (Overland Park), Nightmare on 17th Street (Topeka), Sporting Next Gen Invitational (Kansas City), and a second-place finish at the Challenger Sports Invitational (Overland Park). The Thunder will be back in action on April 14th at the Air Capital Cub in Wichita.
Hays Thunder is a Hays Soccer Club team in the U12 age division with players born in 2011 and 2012. Thunder is coached this season by Adam Fisher and Ty Berry. Founded in 2000, the Hays Soccer Club is organized as an educational and charitable organization to advance and foster the game of soccer among players under the age of nineteen years, as well as to promote sportsmanship and the development of individual soccer players to the highest level of his/her ability.
Hays Soccer Club is adding players and forming new teams at all age levels. To find out more, message us on our Facebook Page or visit our website.