The Tigers, a boys' under-10 select soccer team, won the District II Cup title. Members of the team include (front row, l-r) Sam Blanchette, Kyle Bencala, Logan Schafer, Nick Reimnitz and Ryan Olson; (middle row, l-r) Danny Sullivan, Scott Heller, Jonathan Lynch, Nicholas Ibarra, Gus Winkleman, Jeffrey Delva and Kyle Jensen; and (back row, l-r) trainer Wayne Kania, head coach Peter Lynch, BeaAnne Lynch, and assistant coach John Ibarra.
Jeffrey Delva scored a pair of goals. Kyle Jensen scored one, and so did Jonathan Lynch.
And when Tigers, an under-10 select team from Los Gatos United, put them all together, they had a 4-2 victory over Central Valley United.
But it was more than just another win for the Tigers--it was the first of three in the District II Cup Tournament in Morgan Hill, and it started the Tigers on the road to the Cup championship.
The Tigers came back with a tight 1-0 win over the Almaden Lasers, then crushed the Orchard Valley Rhinos 5-1 to clinch the Cup title.
But it all started in that 4-2 victory.
Central Valley actually jumped out to the early lead in that game, but Jensen tied it with a goal. Delva followed with his two goals and Lynch scored to make it 4-2 by halftime.
That lead stood up for a victory when the defense took over in the second half. Nick Ibarra, Ryan Olson, Gus Winkleman and Yoshi Bencala led the defensive effort for the winners, and goalkeeper Nick Reimnitz shut down Central Valley in the second half.
The defense remained tough a game later against the Lasers. The Tigers shut out Almaden, and clinched the victory when Logan Schafer scored off a Delva assist. Sam Blanchette, Scott Heller and Jensen controlled the game in the midfield.
Rain postponed the Cup title game twice, but the Tigers and Rhinos eventually met for the championship and Danny Sullivan dominated to lead Los Gatos to a 5-1 win.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, February 5, 1997.
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