OSCODA - May 15, 2010 - Saturday the Oscoda Lady Owls hosted their 1st Annual Invitational Soccer Tournament.  Four teams met to vie for the Championship Trophy, Birch Run, Grayling, Gladwin and the host squad.  Gladwin came out on top with two wins and a tie.  Oscoda finished second with a win and two ties.

The tournament opened with the Oscoda Lady Owls taking on eventual champion, Gladwin.  Oscoda broke the ice early, netting a goal in the 6th minute when Dani Griffin found Jessica McCracken open in front of the goal and McCracken banged it into the net.  The two teams battled up and down the field until Gladwin tied it up in the 24th minute.  The second half was much the same with Gladwin firing 21 shots on the Oscoda net.  Freshman Kaylee Charters showed why the Oscoda goalkeeping role is secure for the next three years.  Charters, filling in for absent senior goalkeeper Nicole Jackson, had a strong tournament performance. 

Neither team was able to net a winning goal and the match went to a five player shootout to determine a winner.  Both teams connected on four kicks and the match finished tied.  Marie Stork, McCracken, Griffin and Katy Peacock all converted their shots for the Lady Owls.  Peacock led the defense with 6 steals and 9 intercepts.

Birch Run topped Grayling, 2-0.  Gladwin earned a win against Grayling by the same score.

Oscoda returned to action against Birch Run and won the match, 1-0.  Sophmore Ashley Suszek scored the lone goal of the match.  Stork earned the assist.  Charters earned the shutout by making 11 stops between the pipes.  Mary Ruby led the solid defense with 4 steals and 7 intercepts.  Melissa Yang tallied 9 intercepts.

Gladwin topped Birch Run, 3-1, to win the title but left the door open for Osocda if they could beat Grayling with a shutout.  Grayling dashed Oscoda's hopes in the 17th minute when the found a way to put the ball past Charters. A deflated Oscoda squad allowed Grayling to build a 3-0 lead by the 42nd minute.  The Lady Owls came alive at that point and turned up the offense.  Tori LaPointe found a streaking Stork who nailed a ball into the netting.  In the 54th minute Stork passed to Griffin who scored.  The Owls tied the match with 2 minutes left when LaPointe and Stork hooked up again with Stork netting the ball.  The Lady Owls again went into a shootout to determine a victor and both teams netted two out of five shots.  Seniors Kristen Brubaker and Shannon Fowler both booted winners.  Charters blocked three Grayling kicks during the shootout and nine during regulation.

"I would have liked to win but second place is probably what we deserved", commented Coach Gary Schneider.  "We finished strong in the final game to keep us unbeaten and that made me very happy!"

Oscoda now stands 5-6-2 on the season.  They host Saginaw Arthur Hill on Monday at 5:00pm and Tawas on Friday at the same time.