Basnet, Church score most goals in fall season

MP United-1’s Rohan Basnet, left, is held down by a Kanoa defender during their playoff game for the co-ed U12 title in the NMIFA youth league last Nov. 19 at the Hopwood Junior High School Field. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

MP United Football Club’s Rohan Basnet and Paire FC’s Kaden Church made the most goals in the 2016 NMIFA Youth Fall League that concluded last week.

Basnet and Church collected 25 goals apiece to lead their respective divisions.

The MP United 1 striker played for the club’s co-ed U12 team and won the Golden Boot race against TanHoldings’ Kohtaro Goto and Paire’s Dylan Mister, who were the two other players to haul 20-plus goals in the double-round robin fall season. Goto gained 23, while Mister earned 21.

Of the 11 games (including its playoff loss to Kanoa FC for the division title) MP United-1 played, Basnet scored in seven of them with his most goals (5) in a single match coming during their 12-0 demolition of Paire last Oct. 8.

Basnet’s teammate Rintaro Miyawaki also registered double figures in goals scored after posting 19, while TanHoldings’ Oliver Fajardo and Kanoa’s Merrick Toves recorded 18 and 12, respectively. MP United-1’s Andrew Chung and MP United-2’s Sean Gil had 10 apiece.

In the boys U14 division, Church also won a close fight against TanHoldings’ Mark Esalan, 25-23. Esalan nearly caught up with Church when the former racked up nine goals in TanHoldings’ last game of the season (against Shirley’s FC, 13-1).

Fortunately for Church, he managed to get a hat trick in their 10-2 triumph over Matansa FC, also during the last day of competition in the division. The Paire player gained a good lead early in the season as he had already scored 10 goals after only two games. Church had his most goals (6) in their second game opposite Shirley’s FC (14-1) last Sept. 24.

Church and Esalan were the only two players in their division to score 20-plus goals as TanHoldings’ Kirro Batino, Matansa’s Lolobeyong Benito, and Kanoa’s Ian Maniago recorded 15, 13, and 11, respectively.

Meanwhile, Matansa’s Jun Sik Kim and Guinevere Borja led the Golden Boot races in the boys U17 and girls U15 age groups.

Borja’s 19 in eight games gave her the victory against Kanoa’s Paulynn Joyce, who registered 16. MP United’s Gillian Villagomez was only the third player in the girls U15 division to make 10 or more goals with her 11.

In the boys U17, there were also only three players who hit the twin-digit mark with Kim collecting 13 to edge MP United’s Sun Joon Tenorio (11) and the former’s teammate Terrance Belcher (10). Tenorio foiled Matansa’s 1-2 finish in the Golden Boot Race as he slipped past Belcher after logging 6 goals in their final regular season game (against Kanoa).

Tenorio’s team went on to win the boys U17 fall title after beating TanHoldings in the penalty shootout last Wednesday, 4-3, while Kanoa and Shirley’s FC topped the boys co-ed U12 and girls U15 divisions, respectively.