Last weekend, the Chelsea Lady Sting U10 girls team packed their soccer balls and beach towels for the Emerald Coast Cup Tournament in Destin, Fla., and returned as champions.  After hours of driving, the girls were ready for some on-field action.

In the first game of tournament play, the Lady Sting played Mobile Soccer Club U10 girls. Chelsea landed a 2-0 victory.

Looking forward to round two, the Lady Sting began warm ups for the second game against opponent Capital City Streaks. Before taking to the field, Chelsea’s Rachel Weygand fell and broke her wrist. Wrapped in layers of sports tape, she went in to play the first half of the game.

The hard-fought battle wasn’t easy, as half of the Chelsea team had not only been challenged by skill but suffered further injury to players. During play, with the wind at her back and a kick that graced the clouds, goalkeeper Asia Bradford scored on an end-to-end punt.

“Both teams were stunned,” Lady Sting head coach DeWayne Bradford,” said. “The opposing goalie barely got her hands high enough to touch the ball before it fell. I heard parents on the sideline asking if it was a goal as it was hard to tell from their angle. When the referee made the call, we were beyond excited.”

By the end of the hour, the Lady Sting had answered the call of the Montgomery-based team with a 4-2 final.

Then, staring them directly in the eyes was the fiercest competitor they would play all weekend, hometown favorite and top-ranked Emerald Coast United U10 girls.

Bradford and assistant coach Chad Neal were hopeful but realistic of their team’s physical condition.

“We had one taking breathing treatments between games, the broken wrist, one recouping from pneumonia, a twisted ankle, a player that would take a shoulder to the mouth spinning her like a helicopter resulting in severe cuts and bleeding,” Bradford said.  “It wasn’t pretty. But, they wanted to win.”

In the end, they did.  Chelsea U10 Lady Sting accepted the first place trophy after a 3-2 win.

Teammates and Cup winners include Asia Bradford, Madeline Guillen, Camryn Neal, Lauren Powers, Maura Reed, Madison Smith, Michaela Thoma, Rachel Weygand and Alyssa Young.

The U10 Lady Sting is currently undefeated in regular season play with one game left on the schedule this Wednesday against Trussville United Blaze in Trussville.