LAKE COUNTY — Luis Lopez Jr. from Kelseyville returned from competing in the 2010 Gothia Cup held in Sweden.
Representing the USA boys under-12 division, his team consisted of three players each from Calif. and Fla., with one player each from Texas, Wisc., Va. and Minn. Lopez Jr. was starting goal keeper for the tournament.
The first game was against Sweden.
The USA tied 2-2. The second game was against Germany the USA also tied 1-1 because of a penalty shot. This moved the USA team into a second bracket, where the team faced another Sweden team and lost 1-0. The loss put the USA team in an elimination round against Switzerland, which resulted in a 3-2 loss for the USA team.
The USA team played a friendly match against Russia, as well. Overall the USA under-12 boys finished 28th out of 150 teams. Lopez Jr. had a total of 12 saves for the team and was presented with Most Valuable Player (MVP) for his team. He also received a Russian diplomatic flag for his efforts.
Lopez Jr. said, “This has been a life-changing experience for him. He would like to thank all who helped and supported him while he was there, including the Lakeport Early Lions Club. He collected more than 250 signatures of players from around the world, putting every continent on the ball. Lopez Jr. described his trip as, “awesome,” but doesn”t want to see another airplane for a long time.
