The La Jolla girls blue soccer team (under 8 division) netted the gold recently in Mesa Soccer’s 25th Annual Recreational All-Star Tournament. The squad was made up of a dozen All-Star players from the La Jolla League. Of eight teams in the league, approximately two to four girls from each team made up the all-stars. The girls practiced together for two weeks and then entered the tournament. In the championship game, La Jolla’s Marley Meyer scored the game-winner in a 1-0 victory over Scripps Ranch. In the prior games of the second day, La Jolla had penalty kick rounds in both the playoff and semifinal games. In the first game, La Jolla tied 0-0 and had penalty kicks (which the girls had never done before). The second game La Jolla tied 1-1 with Meyer scoring that goal as well. In the penalty kick portion, La Jolla goalie Kendall Lincoln took a shot right in the face to keep the opponent from scoring. In that semifinal round, La Jolla, which was the number six seed, played the Del Mar Sharks, which is a touring club team and was the top seed in the tournament. La Jolla also defeated Carlsbad on penalty kicks in an earlier contest. “Kendall took at least three balls to the face, including one in the championship game,” La Jolla assistant coach Jason Meyer noted. “She asked us, ‘How many times are they going to kick me in the face?’” Meyer said other players who played well for La Jolla included Samantha Smigliani, who he noted was amazing on defense, Summer Lake, who hustled her heart out, and Chloe Alexander, who he noted was the “X” factor for the squad on defense and offense. Among the other teams in the tourney were Fallbrook, Mesa, Solana Beach, Vista, Ramona, Encinitas, Carlsbad, PB, Poway, Escondido, Valley Center, Scripps Ranch and Del Mar. La Jolla’s wins on the first day of play were over Scripps Ranch (2-0), Fallbrook (3-0) and Encinitas (2-0), with a loss to Vista (1-0). “This was a great experience,” Meyer said. “Both coach Michael Rossbacher and I truly enjoyed the experience. Our girls played really hard and in horrible conditions on day 1. It was windy, cold and raining and they never complained. In fact, the joy on their faces was worth more than you can imagine. During each game, the girls showed great team spirit, sportsmanship and camaraderie. These girls cheered each other on, consoled each other and clearly enjoyed their experience. This was a once-in-a-life-time experience and we were lucky to have been a part of it with these great kids.” Meyer noted that these girls and their supportive parents and coaches will remember this moment for the rest of their lives. “Having lived in La Jolla for many years, I was extremely proud to represent this great city so well,” Meyer said. “These girls represented the city of La Jolla quite well. We should all be proud.” For a complete rundown of the event, visit www.tournament kickoff.com/mesaallstars/brackets/459.