CSL adult league finals wrap up at SoccerFest

Sunday brought an end to the Fall 2011 Commonwealth Soccer League season with the league’s semifinals and championship being held at Patriot Park in Spotsylvania, Va. CSL is the Fredericksburg area’s only sanctioned adult soccer league.

The day also included action involving teams from the Fredericksburg-based youth soccer club FSCI Phoenix as part of Commonwealth SoccerFest.

The day opened with two CSL semifinals at 9 a.m. on fields 4 and 6. On field 4, Real International FC rolled to a 7-0 win over Fusion FC with goals coming from Victor “Tim” Gardner (2), Nelson Canales (2), Aaron Chandler, Ernesto Rodolfo and Sam White. In the other semifinal on field 6, favored St. Corinthians had to rally for a win in penalty kicks to advance. Marcellus Jernigan gave Rappahannock Sport a 1-0 lead in the first half, but Dominguez Valenzuela Alcides leveled the score two minutes into the second half. The teams played to a stalemate through the rest of regulation and overtime before St. Corinthians goalie Mike Kaliris stopped two penalty kicks in the shootout, helping his team secure the 3-2 win.

In the CSL championship at 1 p.m., Real International FC jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first half after a free-kick goal by Ever Perla and held the advantage until the intermission. St. Corinthians came out strong after the break, tying the game on a goal from Jorge Molina and taking a 2-1 lead with a score from Juan Meza. However, with about 10 minutes left in regulation, Real was awarded a penalty kick. Gardner took the shot and Kaliris made the initial save, but Gardner was able to tuck away the rebound to tie the match. Neither team was able to break the deadlock in overtime sending the game to PKs. Both teams converted their first two attempts, but Real goalie Steven Limox saved St. Corinthians’ third. Real converted their next two to hold a 4-3 advantage before St. Corinthians missed its final shot to give Real the championship.

In other action on the day, the FSCI Phoenix club’s two U15 teams took part in an exhibition scrimmage between the CSL semifinals and championship. The players showcased their talents in front of friends and family and the two CSL finalists as they awaited their championship showdown. Following the exciting CSL final, the Phoenix U17 boys took on Chesapeake United SC U17 Juventus in a VSLI Division 1 match. Phoenix jumped out to a 2-0 lead at the half only to see Chesapeake rally to tie the match in the second half. However, Phoenix recovered and scored in the last two minutes of the game to earn a 3-2 victory to close out the day. Led by a solid defense, the U17 Phoenix finished their season in fourth place in their nine-team division with a 5-2-1 record, allowing the third-least goals in the division (nine).

CSL and FSCI also hosted a canned-food drive and penny drive on the day to collect for the Thurman Brisben Center, a full service program addressing the causes and issues surrounding homelessness. The canned food drive collected 153 cans of various food items, while 3,062 pennies were collected in the penny drive.