RYE BROOK - At the beginning of spring, the green fields were lush with color.

Maroon mingled with blue, green provided a bright contrast to red.

The synthetic green turf fields of the Rye Brook Athletic Field Complex yesterday morning were swarming with girls, ages 9 to 14, dressed in colorful soccer jerseys and cleats.

Lawn chairs ringed the fields, as parents and siblings watched their favorite players take part in the Rye Brook Youth Soccer Spring Kickoff, a two-day tournament that drew 80 teams and more than 1,200 kids from throughout Westchester and Connecticut.

The two days were divided into two sessions each morning for the girls and afternoon for the boys.

Ritz Brinas, lugged her lawn chair from her car and made her way down the slope to watch her daughter Isabelle, 9, play.

"She's always been so passionate about soccer," said Brinas. "She's watched the movie 'Bend it like Beckham' a gazillion times."

Isabelle Brinas, a fourth-grader at the Concord Road Elementary School in Ardsley, is part of the Cosmos club, a travelling soccer team based in town.

"Isabelle is the smallest girl in her group, but she's the fastest runner," said the proud mother of her pint-sized daughter.

Indeed, of the four games each team would play that morning, Isabelle's team had won the first one.

The "preseason" tournament is designed for the B teams, or for children who would only qualify in division three and under, said Jeff Silverman, president of the Rye Brook Soccer Club.

"Our club's philosophy is that we are not for the premier teams, they have plenty of tournaments they can participate in," said Silverman. "We want teams who are close to skill levels, so that we don't have one team dominating others ."

The RBSC, a private club founded by town-resident Ken Finder in 1997, has seen a major growth in recent years.

"Soccer has exploded. Four year ago, we had 11 teams and 120 players, now we have 22 teams and 330 kids," said Silverman.

At 9 :30 a.m., team members of the Scarsdale Hornets were sprawled on the sidelines, waiting for their next game.

The Hornets, made up of 9 and 10 year olds, had lost two games this morning.

"We were not aggressive enough," said Karrie Taxter, a fourth-grader at Edgewood Elementary School.

Celia Borman, 10, of the Heathcote Elementary School had another explanation.

"We have not played together for that long. It's only been a year, so we are still getting used to each other," Borman said.

Jeffrey Borman, Celia's father, tried to cheer the girls up with some hot chocolate.

"Organized sports are great for kids," he said. "It gives them a chance to interact with kids from other school districts, and teaches them how to deal with winning and losing."

Ross Elmaleh, 12, a seven-year veteran soccer player, waited to watch his sister Stephanie, 9, play for the Rye Brook team.

Does he give her any pointers?

"No. She yells at me, if I do," he said.

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Reach Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy at 914-694-5004 or svenugop@lohud.com.