The U17 Cowichan Chaos accomplished something not achieved by a Valley soccer team in nearly two decades when they won their Coastal Cup title earlier this month.
The Chaos defeated Langley United 4-0 on May 7 to win the cup, something no Cowichan Valley Soccer Association team had done in 17 years.
After getting through the rounds of 16, eight and four teams, Cowichan and Langley were the last U17 girls teams standing for the finals in Aldergrove.
The well-matched teams played a very tight first half, battling close for 45 minutes.
“We may have had a slight edge, but not too much,” Cowichan head coach Brian Johnston said.
Just before halftime, Emma Dewit made a fantastic individual effort, beating three defenders to get to the net and score, giving her team a vital 1-0 lead.
The second half was much the same as the first.
“A lot of the game was in the middle of the field,” Johnston said. “There weren’t a lot of chances at either end.”
As the second half progressed, Dewit notched her second of the game. Robyn Zinkan then made it 3-0 for Cowichan after Sam Maclean’s shot was just turned aside by the Langley goalkeeper. Dewit completed the hat trick to make it 4-0.
The match was closer than the score might suggest, Johnston insisted, giving a lot of credit to his tenacious defenders.
“It certainly wasn’t a 4-0 game,” the coach said. “Defensively, our backline was outstanding. [Langley] didn’t really get any chances in behind.”
Kara Labelle, Danielle Wince, Maiya Modeste, Kristen Banasch and Khasi Dietrich were solid on the backline, and goalie Brooke Murray, picked up from the Cowichan U16 team, barred the door behind them.
“She did fantastic,” Johnston said of Murray. “The whole team was excellent defensively.”
The Chaos still have the B.C. championships ahead of them in Surrey on July 5-8. The U17 girls are the only CVSA team to qualify for provincials this year.