MPU ends TanHoldings’ win streak

An MP United Football Club player, left, stays close on defense against a TanHoldings FC player during their game in Division A of the M-League Spring 2021 last Sunday at the NMI Soccer Training Center. (Contributed Photo)

Undefeated no more.

MP United denied TanHoldings’ bid for an undefeated season after taking a 2-0 victory in their Division A game of the M-League Spring 2021 season last Sunday at the NMI Soccer Training Center in Koblerville.

Leading up to the face-off between TanHoldings and MP United last weekend, TanHoldings held a win-loss record of 9-1-0 with one game ending in a draw.

During last Sunday’s match, MP United’s Kuu Nishimura and Sunjoon Tenorio worked together to strip TanHoldings of their undefeated standing after scoring two goals each,

Nishimura took the lead for MP United in the 22nd minute, while Tenorio delivered the final blow in the 73rd minute with his goal.

Also winning their respective matches in Division A last weekend were NMI U18 Team A, NMI U18 Team B, and Kanoa.

In the match pitting NMI U18 Team A against Old B Bank, the latter crushed its opponent with a 15-0 victory led by Merrick Toves who landed 5 of the team’s 15 goals with plenty of help from Kohtaro Goto, Philip Megino, Richard Steele, and Taka Borja who contributed 2 goals each, and Markus Toves who added 1.

Merrick Toves wasted no time, taking the lead for NMI U18 A in the 2nd minute. Goto followed up in the 11th minute followed by a goal from Borja in the 15th minute.

Merrick Toves landed back-to-back goals in the 21st and 23rd minute before Goto came back for another goal in the 24th minute.

Megino landed 1 of his 2 goals in the 29th minute with Steele following suit moments later, scoring his goal in the 41st minute.

Merrick Toves scored another goal in the 43rd minute before an own goal from the opposing team in the 52nd minute resulted in a score in their favor. Steele landed his final goal in the 58th minute, followed by Borja’s last goal in the 62nd minute and Markus Toves’ last goal in the 70th minute. Markus Toves managed to land his goal before the end of the game in the 71st minute before Megino closed off the match with a final goal.

Meanwhile, NMI U18 Team A’s sister team, NMI U18 B, won a close match against Paire behind Kaden Church and Reginald Pascual who teamed up with two goals each to prevail.

Church’s back-to-back goals in the 17th and 19th minute kick-started the team’s eventual victory. Pascual followed Church’s lead with back-to-back goals in the 20th and 25th minute to gain a 4-0 lead over Paire.

Paire’s Jireh Yobech got a goal in in the 42nd minute before NMI’s Ariel Jr., Narvaez landed another goal in the 58th minute.

In the final few minutes of the match, Paire scrambled to steal the lead from under their foes nearly triumphing with a goal from Eric Barajas in the 62nd minute and back-to-back goals from Ajani Burrell in the 67th and 78th minute to bring the match to a close 5-4 victory in favor of NMI.

In the Kanoa vs. The One battle, Ruselle Zapanta scored the lone goal of the match in the 47th minute with no follow up from their opponent.