by Sheldon Shealer
It took 83 minutes before Columbia City United, the reigning U17 national champs, got the break it needed.
The Bethesda Dragons had gotten the better part of the play, and held United scoreless until Pat Halter ripped a shot into the upper left-hand corner, giving United a 1-0 victory and the U18 title.
United, along with the other age-group winners, advance to the regional tournament in Erie, Pa.
Heres a look at each final:
Under-18
A trio of All-State players helped United net the game winner over the Dragons.
Matt Gormleys pass to Mike Potempa ultimately found Halter on the right side of the penalty
area.
United's victory was its fourth straight state title and sixth championship overall.
Christian Lewis and Justin Stevens combined on the shutout for Columbia.
Incidentally, Columbia defeated Hagerstown SC in the semifinal round, 5-0. HSCs semifinal appearance is believed to be the first time a team based west of Montgomery County has ever reached the final four.
Stevens, who lives in Hagerstown and attended Smithsburg High School, was in goal for Columbia during the semifinal match.
Under-17
Cam Letke made a habit of scoring game winners at Calvert Hall last year. He did the same on Sunday for the SCB Bays.
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Letkes goal, in the 10th minute, stood up as the Bays ended the programs odd-year drought with a 1-0 victory over the Top Guns.
Since 1990, the Stars had won their age group state title every even-numbered year, while the Top Guns had won in the odd-numbered years.
Under-16
The Bethesda Lions went on a scoring tear in the second half, and pulled away for a 4-1 victory over General Dye and the teams first state title.
Matt Oliver netted the games first goal early in the second half. Before the time had expired, Olivers teammates Nino Marcantonio, Alex Maasry and Brian Marchica had also tallied.
Danny Colosino scored for general Dye.
Under-15
CSC Santos took the long trip, but it has resulted in the teams first state title.
Santos was involved in a first-round dispute and had to replay a crucial match. Santos defeated BFC for a second time and secured its first state semifinal appearance.
The third-year team then completed the run with a wild 4-3 overtime victory against FC Potomac.
Santos led 2-0 before Potomac scored three straight goals. Santos evened the game in the second half and David Choi scored his second goal of the day to win the match in overtime. Jacob Roames also had two goals for Santos.
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Under-14
Kevin and Myles Flynn have said this will be their final year as the Columbia Strikers coaches.
The players sent them off with a state title, edging the Potomac Spirit, 4-3.
Oddly enough, the Strikers reached the finals in 1995 and 1996, and both games were decided in a shooutout.
Daniel Levin scored two goals for Columbia to lead the attack.
Under-13
The SCB Bays powerhouse rolled through another state cup season.
The Bays crushed WHC Thunder, 8-0, for the state title. SCB went 5-0 through state cup play, outscoring its opponents 34-0.
John Newton had two goals while six others contributed in the scoring column. The Bays have
never lost in state cup play and now own four titles.
Under-12
BFC 85 made its return to state cup play a successful one.
BFC won the last U10 title in 1995. It played up last year and was knocked out in a preliminary match against an older BFC squad.
This year, Brian Yi and Nicholas Weber each scored as the Bullets defeated CSC Cosmos, 2-0, for the state title. This win comes a week after BFC won the Columbia Tournament.
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