Franklin Thunder Persevere, Make Noise at MTOC
A group of sixth grade girls from Franklin defied the odds by making it all the way to the semi-finals of the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions (MTOC) over the weekend. The MTOC is a season ending soccer tournament sponsored by Mass Youth Soccer that brings together age/gender group champions from participating statewide travel leagues to crown a single state champion. After going an impressive 7-1-2 during the regular season in section 1A1 of the Boston Area Youth Soccer (BAYS) league , the U12 girls Franklin Thunder set their sites on representing BAYS in this year's MTOC.
First, the Thunder had to qualify as the BAYS U12 representative team by winning a playoff tournament. The task wasn't going to be easy for the Franklin squad, as they knew that their path would likely take them through a tough team from Wellesley that achieved a 9-0-1 mark in section 1A1 and earned a win and a draw against the Franklin squad during the regular season. Fate had other plans, though, as a gritty Natick Tornado team knocked Wellesley off in an early round game, setting up a showdown between Franklin and Natick. The two teams battled in a close match on Saturday, June 19th and the Thunder emerged victorious with a 2-1 win.
The news was mixed for the Thunder as they celebrated their win over Natick. Two key players had suffered season-ending injuries, leaving the team with a total of eight players for the 8v8 tournament. This meant that the team faced up to five games over three stifling days with zero substitutes. Most squads carry at least four substitutes and the MTOC opponents were each the best of the best of their respective leagues.
The Thunder banded together, took a collective deep breath, and rolled into the MTOC with a determination built on hundreds of hours of training and a deep commitment to one another. Parents, coaches, and Franklin supporters watched in awe as the team played valiantly in several round robin-style games on Friday and Saturday. To everyone's utter amazement, the Thunder earned the right to advance to the semi-finals as one of the "final four" of twelve teams in the state.
The Thunder finally fell to a team from Bridgewater on Sunday morning in their semi-final match. After watching the Thunder over the weekend, it became clear that on-lookers really had witnessed a true tournament of champions. While the Thunder may not have won the trophy, they had proven that they are champions in the truest sense of the word. Webster defnes a champion as one who shows marked superiority. The sheer courage, determination, effort, commitment, and fortitude shown by the Thunder was something truly special. Congratulations Thunder, well done!
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