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July 22, 2010

California clubs off and rolling at NARCh Finals

By Phillip Brents
Calirubber.com

With 336 teams total and 4,000 athletes, the 2010 NARCh Finals in San Jose is the largest inline hockey championship tournament this year in North America and, well ... the world.

The upcoming State Wars tournament Aug. 4-15 in Chicago is expected to include approximately 265 teams, and the recently completed Amateur Athletic Union Junior Olympic Games in Southern California attracted approximately 240 teams, with between 2,500 and 3,000 athletes competing from nine nations.

The NARCh Finals championship tournament clearly operates at a level all its own and that's no disrespect to other tournaments, according to NARCh president Daryn Goodwin.  

“Off the top of my head, I would guess there's about 25 Canadian teams, six from France, six from Colombia, three from Mexico and Brazil, two from England and Japan,” Goodwin said in reference to the two-week tourney's international entry list. “Obviously, there's a lot of teams from all over the United States, even Hawaii.”

This year's inline extravaganza faced off July 16 and continues through Aug. 1 at the Silver Creek Sportsplex. The state-of-the-art facility's three rinks are being used almost continuously from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily. Sponsor booths displaying the latest products, particularly the newest high-tech skates, also were out in full force.

Hockey players and fans have come to love the carnival-like, electrifying NARCh atmosphere.

Besides the glut of youth teams that help make NARCh what it is, Goodwin noted this year's NARCh Pro Division should be especially noteworthy with 14 teams competing for $20,000 in prize money.

Goodwin is pleased by the turnout in the youngest age divisions. “There are more 8-under teams this year  -- 14 teams -- which is a good sign for the future of the sport,” he said.

The opening two days of the tournament were devoted to round-robin games in six age divisions (8-under Atom, 10-under Mite, 12-under Squirt, 14-under Pee Wee, 16-under Bantam and 18-under Midget), playoff seeding and skills competitions.

The second day of the tournament was its busiest with 75 games played.

Playoff games faced off on Sunday, July 18. The San Diego Rockets secured the first newly minted 2010 NARCh gold medal by defeating the 949 Anarchy from Irvine, 10-7, in the 6-under NARCh Cub Division. The Anarchy's Ian Somoza led everyone on the floor with six goals while Carter Pauli paced the winners with four goals and Rylan Goodwin and Trey Anderson each scored twice for the Rockets.

Ten championship finals (and nine third-place games) took center court on Monday, with three more championship games played on Tuesday.

The Tour Roadrunners from New York captured four gold medals to lead the event, with titles coming in the Atom Silver, Pee Wee Silver, Pee Wee Club and Midget Silver divisions.

Overall, California teams have enjoyed a successful tourney showing so far with seven gold medals and nine silver medals to their credit. The 949 Anarchy led Golden State finalists with two gold medals (Mite Gold and Squirt Club), one silver medal (NARCh Cub) while also collecting one bronze medal (Atom Platinum). Meanwhile, the Antioch-based Delta River Rats mined a pair of gold medals (Mite Club and Bantam Club).

Other California teams reaching the finals included the Revision Mustangs (first in Atom Gold and second in both Squirt Club and Bantam Club), Mission Rampage (first in Squirt Silver), HB Jr. Ducks (second in Atom Gold), AKS (second in Atom Silver), Silicon Valley Quakes (second in Mite Silver), Reebok HB (second in Mite Club), NorCal Extreme (second in Pee Wee Silver) and Eschelon Puck Hogs (second in Pee Wee Club).

Of the 14 championship games played through the opening five days of competition, 11 involved teams from the Golden State. There were five all-California championship games.

In Monday's gold medal match-ups involving California teams:

• The Revision Mustangs topped the HB Jr. Ducks, 6-1, in the Atom Gold championship game behind hat tricks from William Diaz and Coalson Wolford
• The Delta River Rats, buoyed by an opening goal from Leo Monte De Oco, blanked Reebok HB, 3-0, for the Mite Cub title
• The 949 Anarchy, benefiting from a two-goal performance from Trent Essex, stopped the Revision Mustangs Silver, 5-1, in the Squirt Club championship game
• The Mission Rampage slipped by the City Heat of St. Louis, 4-3, on an overtime goal by Alex Lofink in the Squirt Silver championship game
• AKS, despite getting two goals from Clay McCorgary, dropped a 7-3 match-up against the Tour Roadrunners White in Atom Silver as Justin Steinberg led the New Yorkers with five goals
• The Silicon Valley Quakes fell short by a 5-1 score against the Hawaiian Punch in Mite Silver
• The NorCal Extreme, with goals from Paul Hermle and Ted Xiao, placed runner-up in Pee Wee Silver after falling, 7-2, to the Tour Roadrunners 96 White team
• The Eschelon Puck Hogs dropped a 4-3 overtime contest to the Tour Roadrunners 92 team for the Midget Silver title as Jake Steinberg collected a hat trick and Trevor Shea netted the OT winner for the East Coast victors

In Tuesday's gold medal match-ups involving California teams:

• The 949 Anarchy, behind two goals from Travis Alexander and single goals from Lukas Uhler, Jackson Wozniak and Cayla Barnes, shut out the Arizona Stars, 5-0, in the Mite Gold championship game
• The Delta River Rats, with single goals from Timur Hafizov, Donny Carter, Tyler Connell and Connor Fenton, edged the Revision Mustangs, 4-2, for the Bantam Cub title

Not only was the number of California medalists impressive but so was the number of NorCal teams included among them. The Delta River Rats, Revision Mustangs, Mission Rampage, NorCal Extreme and Silicon Valley Quakes all hail from the northern half of the state.

“The parity has been incredible,” Goodwin said of the playoff rounds. “Watching divisions play out is certainly one of the most rewarding parts of this job. Seeding from the regional events, he lengthy discussions about placement, all of the strict player qualification rules. Now is when all of that really comes into play.

"Being able to watch game after game with close outcomes between teams that wouldn't have the chance to step on the same floor if it wasn't for this event is very rewarding to me personally. As usual, the intensity is turned up a notch in the playoffs. The only way to stay in the tournament at this point is to keep winning.”

In the first five days of competition, the NARCh president easily picked out one Cinderella story: the Mission Rampage's unlikely run to the Squirt Silver championship game. The Rampage qualified for the playoffs as the No. 13 seed but defeated, in succession, the fourth-seeded Revision Mustangs (5-3), top-seeded Eschelon Puck Hogs (7-0), the No. 2-seeded Raw Steel Selects (5-4) and the third-seeded City Heat from Missouri in the final, in a thrilling overtime contest.

“To say they (the Rampage) were flying under the radar would be an understatement,” Goodwin said. “I don't think they were on anyone's radar. The moral to this story is that as long as you're still alive in a tourney, there's still a chance to win it. The Rampage showed that and I wanted to take my hat off tot hem for battling the odds and winning it all.”

Skills competitions have been, not surprisingly, very popular. More than 50 snipers turned out to wreck havoc on goaltenders in the Squirt Silver Division. Awards are being presented  for top snipers, goaltenders and fastest skaters. Video clips are being posted on a regular basis on YouTube (search for Narchplayers).

While the world will be returning to Southern California next year for the AAU Junior Olympic Games, the 2011 NARCh Finals will be making a return trip to the East Coast: the Germain Arena in Estero, Fla.

“We haven't been there since 2007 and it's the favorite location for many, so we're excited to be heading back next summer,” Goodwin said.

For updates on the 2010 NARCh Finals, visit narch.com.
 
2010 NARCh Finals Results
Championship Games
Sunday, July 18

• NARCh Cub: San Diego Rockets (CA) 10, 949 Anarchy (CA) 7

Monday, July 19

• Atom Platinum: Colorado Kodiaks 3, Eagle Ridge Hockey Club (British Columbia) 2 (OT)
• Atom Gold: Revision Mustangs (CA) 6, HB Jr. Ducks (CA) 1
• Atom Silver: Tour Roadrunners White (NY) 7, AKS (CA) 3
• Mite Silver: Hawaiian Punch 5, Silicon Valley Quakes (CA) 1
• Mite Club: Delta River Rats (CA) 3, Rebook HB (CA) 0
• Squirt Silver: Mission Rampage (CA) 4, City Heat of St. Louis 3 (OT)
• Squirt Club: 949 Anarchy (CA) 5, Revision Mustangs Silver (CA) 1
• Pee Wee Silver: Tour Roadrunners 95 (NY) 7, NorCal Extreme 2
• Pee Wee Club: Tour Roadrunners 96 (NY) White 4, Eschelon Puckhogs (CA) 3 (OT)
• Midget Silver: Tour Roadrunners 92 (NY) 2, Revision Rage (PA) 1 (2OT)

Tuesday, July 20

• Mite Gold: 949 Anarchy (CA) 5, Arizona Stars 0
• Bantam Silver: Team Paradise (PA) 4, Detroit Adrenaline 3 (OT)
• Bantam Club: Delta River Rats (CA) 4, Revision Mustangs (CA) 2

Third-place Games

Sunday, July 18

• NARCh Cub: Puck Attack (CA) 8, Delta River Rats (CA) 4

Monday, July 19

• Atom Silver: Puck Attack (CA) 11, 949 Anarchy (CA) 4
• Atom Platinum: 949 Anarchy (CA) 5, San Diego Rockets (CA) 3
• Mite Silver: HB Blades 2000 (CA) 3, Tour Roadrunners (NY) 2 (OT)
• Mite Club: NorCal Extreme 4, Ripon Savage (CA) 3 (OT)
• Squirt Silver: Reebok Jr. Ducks (CA) 6, Tour Raw Steel Select (CA) 4
• Squirt Club: Icemen (CA) 9, Chico Firebirds (CA) 1
• Pee Wee Silver: West Covina High Rollers (CA) 5, Delta River Rats (CA) 3
• Pee Wee Club: Capitals Hockey Club (Colombia) 4, Mission Rampage (CA) 2
• Midget Silver: Capitals Hockey Club (Colombia) 2, Stoke Sabres 93 (UK) 1 (OT)

Tuesday, July 20

• Mite Gold: Eagle Ridge Roller Hockey (British Colombia) 11, RBK Jr. Ducks Eschelon (CA) 3
• Bantam Silver: Eagle Ridge Hockey Club (British Columbia) 4, NorCal Extreme 1
• Bantam Club: Arizona Elite 6, Mission Rampage (CA) 2

NARCh Skills Competition

• Cub: Trey Anderson (San Diego Rockets), fastest skater; Savannah Wilard (949 Anarchy), top goaltender; Nicholas Ganoni (Delta River Rats), top sniper.
• Atom Gold/Silver: Ashley Printzen (Las Vegas Tour Rebels), fastest skater; Savanah Gutierrez (HB Reebok Jr. Ducks), top goaltender; Justin Steinberg (Tour Roadrunners White), top sniper.
• Mite Gold: Tanner Sidaway (Eagle Ridge Hockey), fastest skater; Adam Pose (Thousand Oaks Bruins), top goaltender; Dylan St. Cyr (Eagle Ridge Hockey), top sniper.
• Mite Silver/Club: Noah Baldado (Hawaiian Punch), fastest skater; William Shukait (Silicon Valley Quakes), top goaltender; Kylie Iwamoto (Hawaiian Punch), top sniper.
• Squirt Silver: Seth Acda (San Diego Stingrays), fastest skater; Kyle Zimmerli (Arizona Stars), top goaltender; Russell Spencer (Revision Mustangs Silver), top sniper.
• Bantam Silver: Noah Ongart (N/A), fastest skater; Jesse Sidaway (Eagle Ridge Hockey), top goaltender; Zack Kenyon (Arizona Elite), top sniper.
• Midget Silver: Connor Fenton (High Country Mission Hawks), fastest skater; Nick Percy (N/A), top goaltender; Jason Christie (Team Rubin), top sniper.