After dropping the first game 1-0 to Legends FC of San Bernardino, California, Erie needed two wins and some help to advance to the playoffs. The second game saw the result flip for a 1-0 victory against CO Elevation FC, then in the final pool game Erie FC needed to win by four goals and got exactly that in a 4-0 result over Cabosa Shreveport United from Louisiana.

The win sent the girls through pool play just ahead of Sporting Iowa Central and NASA Tophat NTH loomed with a spot in the finals on the line.

Despite going down a girl with a red card, Erie hung around level play at 1-1, but in the final seconds Anna Johnson hammered a free kick just outside the 18-yard box bardown for a 2-1 victory.

Manta United Soccer Club out of Ohio edged Erie for a 2-1 victory to claim the national title.

Jamestown’s Brielle Berg, Kinsley Berg, Amy Noll, Payton Gibbs and Southwestern’s Mackenzie Rogers helped the Erie FC U16 girls soccer team become finalists at the US Club Soccer National Cup in Denver last week. Submitted photo

Several local girls were an integral part of the Erie squad’s run to the national championship, going 2-1 in pool play with only one goal against. The team was coached by Elvir Vila and Jake Berg, with Jamestown’s Brielle Berg, Kinsley Berg, Amy Noll, Payton Gibbs and Southwestern’s Mackenzie Rogers helping achieve the goal.