SIMI VALLEY SOCCER TOURNAMENT : Simi Valley Stands Up to Wind, Royal for Title

What was supposed to be a classic confrontation between undefeated neighborhood rivals turned out to be a blowout Saturday. Literally.

High northeasterly winds made ball control almost impossible, but Simi Valley High’s offense handled the ball and the conditions well enough to post a 4-1 victory over Marmonte League rival Royal in the championship match of the Simi Valley tournament at Simi Valley High.

“The wind had a tendency to change the game a lot,” Simi Valley Coach Andy Silva said. “I really thought we were capable of shutting them out.”

Midfielder Craig Hampton, the tournament’s most valuable player, scored once and added an assist to help the Pioneers (9-0) win their first tournament title since 1986.

Royal (6-1-1), trailing, 1-0, after Hampton’s lob shot over a diving Steven Hambly at the six-minute mark, tied the score, 1-1, six minutes later when striker Matt Brinkman lifted the ball over an oncoming Angelo Maccano.

But Kenny Greninger gave Simi Valley the lead for good, converting a head shot from six yards off John Simmons’ throw-in with 11 minutes left in the half. Simi Valley added two more scores before halftime.

The Pioneers stretched their lead to 3-1 on an Andre Markarian penalty kick, awarded to Simi Valley after Highlander midfielder Kai Schraml tripped Greninger in the penalty area. And Brian Weaver scored on a cross from Hampton with less than a minute to play in the half to round out the Pioneers scoring.

Maccano recorded eight saves in goal for Simi Valley.

Simi Valley JV 2, Bakersfield West 1--Right wing Brian Lopez scored off Jason Maass’ free kick with 14 minutes remaining to snap a 1-1 tie and lift the Simi Valley JV team to victory in the third-place game.

The Pioneers (13-2-1), down 1-0 at halftime, tied the score 10 minutes into the second half when left wing Marc Hernandez, flanked by three Viking defenders, rolled a shot out of the reach of goalkeeper Steve Vesper.