Travis soccer team takes crown at annual Defender Cup

  • Published
  • By Nick DeCicco
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Airman 1st Class Brent Morrison used his legs to keep the Defender Cup in the hands of the Armed Forces.

When the championship battle came down to penalty kicks, Airman Morrison kicked a shot that sailed into the back of the net, giving the Travis Football Club a 6-5 victory earlier this month in the annual soccer tournament at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. 

To do so, Travis needed to overcome S.A. Executive, a civilian squad brought in to even the number of teams participating at 18, said Staff Sgt. Jaime Cortes, Travis' coach. 

Keeping the title in the Air Force's hands was important to the Travis team and a number of their vanquished foes, Sergeant Cortes said, noting a number of teams came out to cheer Travis on in the title game. 

"They wanted us to win," Sergeant Cortes said. "They didn't want a civilian team taking the tournament." 

Just before Airman Morrison's tournament-winning shot, on the other end of the field, Travis goalkeeper Senior Airman Tommy Croteau made a crucial save during the penalty kick competition, which drew the crowd's approval. 

"Hearing the crowd roar after I made the save was pretty cool," he said. "I love penalty kicks. I love when it's just between me and the other goalkeeper." 

The save was probably the biggest Airman Croteau made in the tournament. Prior to the title game, he surrendered four goals in seven contests, earning him the honor of Goalkeeper of the Tournament. 

"He was definitely above and beyond everyone else there," Sergeant Cortes said.
One of their teammates, Airman 1st Class Brendan Victory, won the Golden Boot award for scoring the most goals in the tournament. It was the second consecutive year Airman Victory won the honor. 

Sergeant Cortes said injuries hampered the 2008 team, but also that this year's team worked well together. 

"You could tell the team this year was more united and the chemistry was much better than last year," he said. 

In the march to the finals, Travis went undefeated in pool play, winning all four games. In the first round of the playoffs, Travis knocked off Randolph 6-0, then beat Florida's Eglin Air Force Base 5-0 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Travis sunk the host team, Lackland Air Force Base, 7-2 to edge the two-time defending champions, before knocking off S.A. Executive in the finals. 

Airman Croteau said one of the biggest factors was the strength of the squad's defense.
"Our defense was just rock solid," he said. "We had shutout written in our mind from the beginning." 

The team's level of commitment impressed Sergeant Cortes, who said its member's paid for their travel to the tournament themselves. 

Sergeant Cortes is set to PCS to Korea this winter, meaning this year's Defender Cup challenge was the last opportunity he and a few of his teammates that spent four years together had to win. 

"We came in saying 'we've got to win this,'" Sergeant Cortes said. "That was our goal -- to go out with a bang." 

It was Travis' second time participating in the Defender Cup. Last year, the team took fourth. 

Locally, the team plays in the Fairfield Adult Soccer league. 

For more information on the team or for individuals interested in playing, contact Staff Sgt. Fred Koeller, the team's new head coach, at 423-7937.