Members of Vail Soccer Club Chelsea take part in the parade of teams during the opening ceremonies of the Coldwell Banker Shootout.

Photos by James S. Wood / arizona daily star

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The 18th annual Coldwell Banker Shootout kicked off Friday with the Soccer Olympics. Teams marched in the opening ceremonies and then players got down to business — a shootout, juggling, a dribbling relay and accuracy shooting competitions.

"There's lots of different levels of competition here," Fort Lowell's Red Storm coach Hank Feldman said. "So if you're a team that's super competitive, there are teams that you can go against. But if you're more recreational, there are teams like that too."

But soccer is not the only thing the event offers.

"There's a carnival-like atmosphere here with all the food, the games. It's like a mini World Cup," Feldman said.

Tucson Hoot Owls Cody Thivener, Reuben Malzo, Mitch Rainey, P.J. Jordan, Tyler Glasser, Nicholas Harris, Dustin Allred and Kenneth Wheeler dressed up like their team mascot for Friday night. The 10- and 11-year-olds painted on glasses and wore mustaches.

"I like dressing up but my favorite part is going to be the shooting," said Rainey, who is playing in the shootout for the first time since moving from Utah.

Payton Mutsaers, 9, and her teammates from the Gilbert Thunder marched in the Soccer Olympics with a handmade sign reading "Instant lunatics … Just add soccer." Asked to show how crazy they are, the face-painted girls screamed as parents took pictures.

Not only did the Lady Swoosh of Las Cruces, N.M., deck themselves out in blue and white face paint, necklaces and boas, but captain Jazzie Benavidez, 12, also spent a "very long time" getting her dog ready. She used hair paint to turn the dog's white coat blue. Her teammates also added beads, bows and ribbons to the collar.

The Tucson Jaguars were the only team to ride in the opening ceremonies. Paloma Lowell, 9, drove her cheering teammates around in her family golf cart, which was decorated with Christmas lights, bows and steamers. "It feels so cool not having to walk like the other teams," Alexis Gillie, 8, said. "I just can't wait to play against the other teams tomorrow. I love soccer."

To see more photos from the shootout, go to azstarnet.com/slideshows