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SOCCER: Morris lifts Coronado girls to Las Vegas Kick-Off title

Michaela Morris has made her mark in every Coronado girls soccer match this season.

That didn’t stop on Saturday afternoon in the Las Vegas Kick-Off championship at Green Valley.

The senior standout scored the go-ahead goal with just more than five minutes remaining to help the Cougars overcome a 2-1 halftime deficit and win 3-2 over the Gators.

“She’s one of the tools that we definitely use,” eighth-year coach Dana Neel said. “She’s a solid player, but I also think it’s a team effort.”

Morris, who led the team with 28 goals last season, is on pace to shatter that mark this year. The UNLV-commit leads the team with seven goals and has an assist for the Cougars (4-0-1).

Coronado scored first on Saturday when Chynna Zurflueh found a moving Ashley Thomas just six minutes into the match to go up 1-0.

Green Valley (3-1-1) then responded 12 minutes later when Talia Lopez took a rebound off of goalkeeper Julia Rude’s hands and sent it to the back of the net.

The Gators got their next goal just before halftime on a free kick just outside the box from Alexis Kirson. Kirson lined up in the center of the field and sent a laser over a wall of defenders and Rude to put Green Valley up 2-1 at the break.

But Coronado, which marginally outpossessed the Gators, aggressively fought back in the second half. Green Valley’s Carli Perkins was given a red card for tripping Morris on a breakaway, allowing the Cougars a one-player advantage with 33 minutes remaining.

“It pulled a man out of their attack so it allowed us to push forward harder and score those extra goals,” Neel said. “We took advantage of that, of course, because that’s how the game’s played.”

Thomas scored her second goal with 17 minutes to go before Morris got on the scoresheet late.

“(Thomas) is an addition to our team this year, and we’re just learning what her capabilities are,” Neel said. “She has proven herself on the field, and we’re very excited to use her.”

Rude had five saves.

Kiyana Lopez made seven saves for Green Valley.

“(This tournament) has been a time of getting to know each other and seeing how each other plays,” Neel said. “It’s good to have a boost at the beginning, but we still have some work to do. It’s a nice little kickoff for the season. It’s always a hyped-up game between us two. Never is it an easy win. We always battle for every win we get against Green Valley.”

Palo Verde 2, Arbor View 1 — At Faith Lutheran, Hannah Coleman’s goal with 25 minutes left in the match broke a 1-1 tie and allowed the Panthers to finish third in the Las Vegas Kick-Off with a win over the Aggies.

Gianni Trana also scored for Palo Verde.

Katelyn Laurente netted Arbor View’s goal.

Shadow Ridge 0, Faith Lutheran 0 — At Faith Lutheran, Jenna Gallagher made four saves en route to a shutout, and the Mustangs claimed fifth-place in the Las Vegas Kick-Off by outscoring the Crusaders in a penalty-kick shootout.

Beca Lescenski made 10 saves for Faith Lutheran.

Las Vegas 3, Centennial 2 — At Green Valley, Adriana Domingo scored twice to lead the Wildcats by the Bulldogs in the seventh-place match of the Las Vegas Kick-Off.

Alyssa Mireles added a goal for Las Vegas.

Victoria Cera scored twice for Centennial.

Legacy 11, Chaparral 1 — At Chaparral, Nadia Hernandez scored five goals to lead the Longhorns in a rout of the Cowboys.

Erica Schomburg added two goals, and Emma Singleton had a goal and two assists for Legacy. Claire Singleton, Alysa Cool and Diana Perea also scored for the Longhorns, who got two assists from Tavia Wells.

Mercedes Cortez scored for Chaparral.

Virgin Valley 2, Parowan (Utah) 1 — At Cedar City, Utah, Marlene Quirarte scored twice, including the match winner with 30 seconds left, to lift the Bulldogs past the Rams.

Quirarte’s direct kick from 35 yards out deflected off a Parowan defender and into the net to break a 1-1 tie.

Taylor Robb scored for Parowan.

Cedar (Utah) 6, Virgin Valley 0 — At Cedar City, Utah, Tawni Bowden scored three goals as the Redmen blanked the Bulldogs.

Nicole Jenkins, Holly Carpenter and Courtney Morgan also scored for Cedar.

BOYS

Green Valley 5, Spring Creek 0 — At Spring Creek, Maliq Cooper had two goals and two assists as the Gators won the Spring Creek Jamboree by defeating the Spartans.

Cole Aronson added a goal and an assist, and Austin Quirt and German Martinez also scored for Green Valley, which went 3-0 in the two-day tournament.

Bryant Peralta and Salvatore Hicks combined on the shutout.

Green Valley 5, Elko 1 — At Spring Creek, Quirt had two goals and an assist to help the Gators down the Indians in the Spring Creek Jamboree.

Ricardo Nunez and Cooper each added a goal and an assist for Green Valley, which also got a goal from Connor Malone.

Pahrump Valley 2, Churchill County 1 — At Spring Creek, Adrian Maldonado’s goal with seven minutes left in the match lifted the Trojans by the Greenwave in the Spring Creek Jamboree.

Maldonado and Alex Ramirez each had a goal and an assist for Pahrump.

Pahrump Valley 3, Jerome (Idaho) 3 – At Spring Creek, Maldonado scored with four minutes remaining as the Trojans rallied from a 3-0 halftime deficit to tie the Tigers in the Spring Creek Jamboree.

Victor Gomez and Aaron Alcarez also scored for Pahrump.

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