With the match tied 1-1 with about a minute left, Emma Cazares took a header off of a corner but there were too many Walden Grove defenders to squeeze her shot through but Bri Pickett was there for the rebound and she found net to put Salpointe up 2-1, and that’s how the quarterfinal match at the Kelly Pierce Classic ended.

The Brandon Bean Classic was separated into two tournaments this winter with the girl’s portion renamed to honor Kelly Pierce who passed away in August at the age of 44. Brandon Bean was a former player at Salpointe who passed away from an injury suffered in a scrimmage in 1992 and the overall tournament was named in his honor in 1993 and his name continues for the boys.

Life can be a mystery and it can be magical. Pickett told me she had a habit of scoring on Pierce’s birthdays in the past and that trend continued this year on a day that would have been Pierce’s 45th birthday.

Walden Grove (1-1-1) took a 1-0 lead on a goal from Madison Miranda in the 46th minute but Jhianae DeRosier tied it up 1-1 two minutes later. The Lancers (2-1) will take on Mica Mountain (2-1) at 9 a.m. Friday morning in the semifinal round and Marana (3-0) will play Buena (3-0) in the other semifinal match at 10:30 a.m. The two winners will face off at 3 p.m. for the championship.

For the Brandon Bean, Salpointe (3-0) will play Sunnyside (2-1) at noon and Mica Mountain (2-1) will take on Buena (1-1-1) at 1:30 p.m. in the boy's semifinal round. The championship match is set for 5 p.m.

The Walden Grove girls will host Sabino (1-0) to open up the regular season on Monday.