By K.D. Norris
The Lee High School girls soccer team, on Saturday, May 12, will host its first Copa Rebelde — Rebel Cup, for those of you not bilingual, which most of coach Gabriel Snyder’s team is.
And while the event should feature some great tournament soccer action, it will also be a community celebration of sorts.
“We are lucky to have a team and community that can embrace their cultural heritage as much as they do,” coach Snyder said to WKTV. “Copa is ultimately just a word but that word represents more than a tournament cup. It represents our small community’s strong ties with Latin America.
“This event also brings in a community of athletes and their families because baseball and softball are playing tournaments on the same day. It will be a great day to be a Rebel.”
The Copa Rebelde field will feature the Lee varsity team hosting teams from West Michigan Aviation Academy and Wyoming Potter’s House Christian High School.
The schedule has Potter’s House vs Lee at 10 a.m., WMAA vs Potter’s House at 11:30 a.m., and Lee vs WMAA at 1 p.m.
Each contest will be 60-minute games, 30-minute halves with a 10 minute halftime. There will be no overtime, with tie games decided by penalty shoot out. The tournament champion will be determined by record, then point differential/shoot out victory.
The tournament counts as one game date against each team’s schedule per MHSAA guidelines.
This is not the first time Lee has hosted the Copa Rebelde, but the first time it was not a boys team tournament.
“We have hosted a boys tournament in the fall the last several years and decided it was high time we held one for our girls as well,” said John Cain, assistant athletic director at Lee.
“To the girls, it is an opportunity to play competitive soccer in a different format,” Snyder said. “This year’s team has not found a lot of success on the field but has shown a ton of leadership on and off the field. For them it is just another opportunity to showcase that leadership. I am excited to finally give them an opportunity for tourney play at our home field.”
While the Lee varsity team has a “rely on everyone approach. We do have a couple of surprising standouts this year,” Snyder said. “Kristy Medina is our primary forward; she is fast and can make you miss. She is a calm leader.
“Our entire starting defense — Jazmin Pena, Karina Lopez, Yesenia Santos, and Vanessa Camargo — have played the hardest on our team this year. Long games of multiple shots, these four are bruised up and still tough.
“Lastly, our keeper, Jennifer Hernandez. She moved up from JV in the beginning of the year and has really improved as the season has moved along.”
