Verde Valley School has become a breeding ground for champion soccer players all over the world.

Not including 12 American players on the Coyotes’ 23-player coed roster, 10 different countries were represented on the VVS team that beat the Rimrock campus of the Southwestern Academy, 4-0, April 30, to cap three undefeated seasons in a row with its third straight Northern Arizona Athletic Association championship.

“Almost one-quarter of the school played on our team,” said head coach Andy Gill, now in his 11th season as coach at a school with an enrollment of 110 students. “I don’t cut anybody. It’s a really inclusive team, but we’re pretty competitive because we have so many kids from overseas — everything from South Africa to Germany, El Salvador, France, Ghana and America is obviously represented.”

“Pretty competitive” is a misnomer to describe the dominance VVS has held over charter school soccer teams in north central Arizona the past three springs, particularly this one, as the Coyotes averaged almost 7½ goals scored per game over an 11-win schedule while allowing a grand total of six — all of which were scored in two games against the same team, Southwestern Academy.

For the full story, please see the Wednesday, May 28, issue of the Sedona Red Rock News.