MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUN, Japan -- Forward Terence Smith scored two goals for the Iwakuni Soccer Team in their 4-0 shut out victory over the Otsu Bees at the North Side Field June 26.
The Iwakuni team invited the Bees to a friendly exhibition game while they were on a three-day tour of the Station.
"We were really happy that we got the opportunity to play against the Americans," said Hideaki Kato, Bees forward. "They have a really good team and are very competitive. We had a lot of fun and made really good friends. We were really lucky to be able to play with them."
The game started off with a fast paced tempo with both teams streaking up and down the field. Smith started the scoring when he found a crease in the Bees defense, slipped through and booted a shot into the upper right hand corner of the goal.
On the next kick off the Iwakuni team retained control of the ball and Randall Villavicencio, Iwakuni midfielder, took full advantage of his opportunity to increase his teams lead as he dribbled past two Bee defenders to score another goal.
With 10 minutes left in the first half, Iwakuni maintained a 2-0 lead over their Japanese adversary and began to play some hard-nosed defense that kept the Bees from scoring.
"We did a good job preventing them from scoring because they had some pretty good opportunities," said Smith. "Our defense played outstanding for us, but at halftime we knew that we needed to put a few more points on the board just to close the deal."
As the second half unraveled, Iwakuni continued to play tough defense, but took advantage of two break away opportunities, with Smith scoring his second goal and midfielder Mijael Valencia adding another with a bouncing shot over the head of the Bees goalie.
When the game ended both teams lined up facing each other, bowed and then shook hands, symbolizing their mutual respect and to congratulate each other on a game well played.
"This game wasn't about winning or losing. I wish we could have won, but it was more about two teams from different countries that love to play soccer," said Kato. "We were just out here to have a good time and that's exactly what we did."