The Tribune

THE Lyford Cay Dragons staked their claim as the most dominant soccer programme in the country with a pair of national titles to complete a season of milestones.

The Dragons won both the boys’ and girls’ national titles at the 2019 Sam Haven National Soccer Championships which concluded at the Roscow Davies Soccer Field on Saturday night.

The boys became the first two-time champions with a 5-4 win over the CR Walker Knights.

The girls’ team claimed the title with a 6-1 win over the visiting Tabernacle Baptist Academy Falcons in their finale.

Paige Smith was the star for the Dragons once again and scored four goals in the title game. She was named the tournament MVP with seven goals in just two games.

The Dragons were also given the Fairplay award given to the team that promotes the spirit of fair play and compassion throughout the tournament.

Smith also delivered the first hat trick and powered the Dragons to a 3-0 win over the Anatol Rodgers Timberwolves in the semi-finals. Following the semi-final win, Dragons head coach Annisa Albury said her team’s continuity continues to be a deciding factor as their season of milestones continues.

“The girls play together a lot, we’ve been looking forward to this since we weren’t able to come last year,” Albury said. “The girls play really well together as a team, they play for each other, they play for the school, they don’t play for themselves so I’m really proud.”

In a back and forth match with the Knights, the Dragons’ boys separated themselves late, led by a MVP performance from Oliver Townsend.

Both LCIS teams were top seeds that received byes through the first round to the semi-final.

The Dragons won 2-1 over the Aquinas Aces in a rematch of the BAISS championship final to advance to the national title game.

In the boys’ bronze medal game, the Aquinas Aces scored a 5-2 win over the Tabernacle Baptist Falcons and, in the girls’ bronze-medal game, the Anatol Rodgers Timberwolves scored a 3-2 win on penalty kicks over the CR Walker Knights.