Burroughs boys’ soccer comes on to defeat Hoover
Burroughs’ William Rosales heads the ball against Hoover’s Benik Housepian.
For the early going of the first half of its Pacific League match against Burroughs High, the Hoover boys’ soccer team dominated play, keeping the ball primarily in the Indians’ end and not allowing a shot in the first 20 minutes of play.
But then the Tornadoes went flat. At the same time, Burroughs stepped up its game and took over the contest.
The Indians used that momentum to score a goal in the first half and kept up their dominance early in the second half of a 2-1 victory over Hoover at Memorial Field.
“We started off very slow today,” Burroughs Coach Mike Kodama said. “We just didn’t seem to have that extra energy so we had to make some quick changes to switch some things around a little bit.
“I thought that when we brought in [midfielder] Ari [Arango] and [midfielder] Anton [Prather], the whole game changed for us. And that was about midway through the first half. We were just trying to find the combination that worked for us.”
Burroughs (12-6-2, 8-3-1 in league for 25 points) entered the game with hopes of staying in contention for the league title. But those hopes were likely dashed when Pasadena (10-1-1 in league for 31 points) secured a share of the league crown with a 2-0 victory against Burbank on Friday. With two matches remaining, the Indians are alone in second place.
The loss leaves Hoover (9-8-3, 5-6-1 for 16 points) on the outside looking in at an automatic playoff spot, as Crescenta Valley (5-5-2 for 17 points) vaulted into fourth place (the final slot for an automatic berth). Hoover is tied for fifth with Burbank, while Muir (6-4-2 for 20 points) is in third.
In the opening minutes, Hoover had shots on goal from Anthony Camacho and Romio Sislian, but couldn’t get anything past Burroughs goalkeeper Jordan Morgan (13 saves).
After the first few chances, the Tornadoes went flat.
“I think, taking nothing away from Burroughs, they’re a good team, but for that first 25 minutes there was just one team on the field and that was us,” Hoover Coach Anastasios Metallinos said. “They only crossed into our half maybe once or twice and they only had long balls to the goalie. But we have to capitalize on those moments.
“As coaches, we can motivate them and pump them up before the game, but eventually that wears off. So the first 25 minutes, if you don’t capitalize on that energy, you are going to have problems.”
The Indians created their share of scoring chances after the 25-minute mark of the first half and hit pay dirt in the 33rd minute. On a corner kick from the right side by Josh Sanchez, the ball was lofted to the far post where Cade Borland was positioned unmarked. Borland took the offering and headed the ball in for the goal and a 1-0 Burroughs lead.
Burroughs went into halftime with the 1-0 advantage.
The Indians made it 2-0 with a goal five minutes into the second half on another set piece. On a long throw-in by Cameron Kelly, the ball dropped in front of the Hoover goal among a group of players. Burroughs’ William Rosales was able to get to the ball and directed it to the net for a goal.
“It’s really nice to get a chance like that on a throw-in,” Rosales said. “He gave it to me and I just put it in.”
Hoover was able to cut the lead in half in the 69th minute when Benik Housepian made good on a penalty kick. The Tornadoes had some prime scoring chances in the waning minutes, but couldn’t capitalize.
“We were playing very good at the end of that game, but I think it just came too late for us,” Metallinos said.
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Jeff Tully, jeff.tully@latimes.com
Twitter: @jefftsports
