The Andover Recreation Committee soccer teams closed out their season with a few tournaments.

Michelle Dudek, Harvey Pine, and Chris Bentzler, who were the first and second grade coaches, held a scrimmage among the players. Even though it was a rainy day, the kids really enjoyed themselves and played some stellar soccer. They ended the season with snacks, juice, and a love for the game.

The third and fourth grade team, who was coached by Heidi Murphy and assisted by David Salathe, took part in a memorial tournament held in New London on October 11 to end their season. Though the team played together the entire season, there were just enough players at the tournament to support two teams. One team was coached by Heidi, and the other team was coached by Morgan Salathe and Anne Swayze. The kids played hard, had a couple of wins, and came away exhausted, as it was a warm, nice October day.

The players really started to work well together toward the end of the season. The fifth and sixth graders had two friendly games between the boys and girls teams. Not only was there friendly competition between the teams, but they had to avoid the friendly skunk that decided to grace the field with its presence. The teams seemed quite even, as the boys won the first game and the girls were the victors in the re-match.

The fifth and sixth grade boys team was coached by Robert Koziol. They came in second in their division for the end-of-year tournament held in Warner on October 18. Robert made great strides with the team, and they should look good for next year, as Liam Donovan was the lone sixth grader on the team.

The girls’ fifth and sixth grade tournaments were held in Andover for the C Division. The Andover girls were coached by Claudio Marcus and tied for third place overall in their division. It was a tough tournament as the rain, thunder, and loss of the use of one field required the tournament to be changed quite a bit. The girls had to play only 15-minute games, and some of them were sudden death, which meant once a goal was scored, the game was over.

On behalf of the Andover Recreation Department, I would like to thank the coaches, players, and parents for a good, positive season. Until next fall … dribble on!