The562’s middle school sports coverage is sponsored by the Long Beach Century Club.
It was a battle to the very end in a nail-biting finish for the Long Beach Division II Middle School Girls’ Soccer Championship. After a dramatic 3-3 draw at the end of regulation, the Cubberley Cubs defeated the Tincher Tigers in penalty kicks to secure their second consecutive championship title at LBCC Field.
“The girls played their hearts out completely,” said Cubberley Coach Lawrence Sevilla. “I’m so proud of this team.”
Cubberley struck first when eighth grader Zoe Christensen finished a well-placed ball after a defensive clearance, giving the Cubs a 1-0 lead.
Tincher responded quickly, with Jola Aina driving through multiple defenders to level the match at 1–1.
The eighth grader Aina for Tincher was a massive force on the Tigers’ offense, creating shots and other offensive opportunities all afternoon.
Momentum swung back to Cubberley as Lynelle Zapata buried a shot into the bottom corner to restore the Cubs’ lead 2–1.
Right before halftime, the Cubs extended their advantage to 3–1, looking to keep the lead going forward.
The second half was a completely different story, as Tincher made a comeback that would eventually send the game into overtime.
The Tigers cut the deficit to 3–2 after a deflected finish from Aina. From there, Tincher controlled stretches of the game, continuing to pressure the defense and generate offensive opportunities.
With a few minutes remaining in regulation, Tincher completed their comeback. Aina broke through three Cubberley defenders to score and tie the match at 3–3, forcing overtime after the two-goal comeback for the Tigers.
After a scoreless yet increasingly physical overtime where Cubberley was issued a yellow card, the match was sent into penalty kicks with both teams’ seasons on the line.
“I had full faith in our goalie Juliet Rumery as we went into these PKs. She’s been amazing for us all season, and I knew we had what it took to go in and make the right play,” said Sevilla.
Both goalkeepers from Cubberley and Tincher were heavily involved throughout the match, as each side’s offense created multiple scoring chances that would narrowly miss the mark.
Cubberley got off to a strong start in penalty kicks, with early successful shots from Rumery and Christensen, while Tincher was only able to convert once and missed their other attempts.
While both teams had a couple misses, Tincher couldn’t finish their chances, ultimately giving Cubberly the edge.
The Cubs stayed consistent enough to come out on top and secure the win, claiming the Girls’ All-City Division 2 Championship.
“We were here last year, down 1–0, here we were up 3-1 at some point, but anything can change in soccer, so we just gutted it out and were able to come out with the win,” said Sevilla.
