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MPU players lead youth league awardees
The Golden Boot and Golden Glove awardees in the 2016 NMIFA Youth Spring League pose with their trophies during yesterday’s presentation at Kanoa Resort.
(Roselyn B. Monroyo)
MP United Football Club took five out of the eight individual awards in 2016 NMIFA Youth Spring League handed out yesterday at Kanoa Resort.
In the U12 division, MPU swept the two awards in the age group with Rintaro Miyawaki getting the Golden Boot plum and teammate Richard Steele bringing home the Golden Glove trophy.
Miyawaki collected 29 out of MPU’s 68 goals in nine games for the most made by any player in the entire youth league. The MPU striker scored in each match in the spring season, averaging 3.2 goals per game with his most (6) recorded in their opening win (11-1) against Paire last Feb. 13. Steele, on the other hand, allowed the least goals in the division, limiting their foes to 18.
MP United’s three other individual awards came from Gillian Villagomez and Sunjoon Tenorio, who bagged the Golden Boot trophies in the girls U15 and boys U17 divisions, respectively, and Christopher Aninzo—the winner of the Golden Glove plum in the boys U17.
With Aninzo playing goalkeeper for MP United, the three other squads that challenged the spring champion tallied only three goals—the least allowed in the entire league. MPU also posted the most goals (35) with 13 of them coming from Tenorio, who managed to beat Matansa’s Jun Sik Kim and Terrence Belcher for the Golden Boot award after firing eight goals in their last game and 14-0 demolition of Kanoa late last month.
In the girls U15 division, Villagomez scored nearly half of MPU’s total goals (47) with her 23, to get the Golden Boot award in her age group. Kanoa’s Theresa Toves took the Golden Glove trophy for allowing only 10 goals.
Completing the spring league’s individual awardees list were Paire’s Kaden Church and Tan Holdings’ Floyd Muna. Church earned the Golden Boot award in the boys U14 age group after tallying 20 goals in 10 games, while Muna was given the Golden Glove plum after holding the five squads they faced twice to 20 goals.
The spring league awardees, along with U12 and FA Challenge Cup champion MPU A, U14’s Tan Holdings, girls U15’s Shirley’s FC, and boys U17’s MPU, received their medals and trophies before the send-off ceremony for the CNMI Girls U14 National Team.
