Varsity Gold Defeats Birdville 3-1in Season Opener
Varsity Gold News
September 18, 2025
McKinney Varsity Gold earned a 3-1 victory over Birdville-VG on the road at Euless (Lehtinen Rink) on September 17, 2025, powered by a natural hat trick from forward Tate Cakir and strong team defense down the stretch.
Game Recap
McKinney jumped out to an early lead as Tate Cakir opened the scoring on the power play in the first period, assisted by Alexander Johnston and Nathan Upvall. After Birdville tied it up midway through the second, Cakir responded with two more power play goals—one assisted by Ryder Friesen and Nicholas Ray, the other by Upvall and Ray—completing a natural hat trick and putting McKinney ahead 3-1.
Key Stats
• Final Score: McKinney-VG 3, Birdville-VG 1
• Shots on Goal: McKinney 25, Birdville 26.
• Period Breakdown:
• McKinney: 6 (1st) / 12 (2nd) / 7 (3rd) = 25
• Birdville: 16 (1st) / 5 (2nd) / 5 (3rd) = 26
• Special Teams: McKinney scored all three goals on power plays while the penalty kill held strong in the third period.
Highlights
• Hat Trick Hero: #22 Tate Cakir netted all three goals for McKinney, two with the man advantage in the second period.
• Physical Play: Birdville’s player was issued multiple penalties and game misconducts for fighting and facemask infractions, forcing Birdville to play short-handed throughout much of the second period.
• Goaltending Battle: Despite being outshot 16-6 in the first, McKinney’s goaltending and defense kept Birdville off the board until midway through the second.
McKinney goaltender Andrew Demma stood tall in net, earning the win by stopping 24 of 25 shots for a stellar .960 save percentage and backstopping the team through the full 45 minutes of play.
Demma’s reliability in net anchored McKinney-VG’s penalty kill and helped secure the road victory against Birdville-VG.