Crescenta Valley girls’ soccer’s title hopes shut out by Arcadia
LA CRESCENTA — A shot at sharing a Pacific League title and creating utter chaos atop the standings was at the feet of the Crescenta Valley High girls’ soccer team.
However, in what could be construed as a microcosm of their league campaign, the Falcons produced a promising first half before finding struggles in the second.
Buoyed by a natural hat trick from junior Amanda Howard, Arcadia ran its league reign to seven straight championships with a 4-0 win over Crescenta Valley in the teams’ league finale Thursday afternoon at Crescenta Valley High.
The Falcons, who trailed by a goal at halftime, allowed three scores over the final 17 minutes.
“I don’t know if I saw a dramatic change [in our play from the first half to the second half], but compared to the second half there [at Arcadia in the first matchup], we weren’t battlingit out like we were,” said Falcons coach Tyrasha Peterson, whose team tied the Apaches, 1-1, in the teams’ first meeting.
With the loss, Crescenta Valley (10-7-5, 8-2-2) finished third in league, with Arcadia (12-6-2, 10-0-2) taking the top spot again as it ran its league unbeaten streak to 32 in a row. Burroughs (14-2-3, 9-1-2) finished second. A Falcons win on Thursday would have forged a three-way share of the league crown.
But Howard and the Apaches defense prevented that.
“After we tied last time, we were really determined to get the win today,” Howard said. “We completed our mission.”
Howard scored in the ninth minute when an Apaches cross found a scrum in front of the net. Falcons goalie Gracie Zaragoza batted away the ball but had no room for leverage to push it far. Another Apaches attempt was fended off by a Falcons defender, but Howard tapped in the score into an exposed right side of the net as Zaragoza was blocked by a throng of players.
“I was just there in the right place to kick it in,” Howard said.
Howard scored again in the 17th minute off a rebound for a 2-0 lead and once more in the 68th minute off another rebound, this time a Zaragoza save, for a 3-0 advantage. Madison Zordilla closed out the scoring.
Crescenta Valley was 6-0-1 following its first matchup with Arcadia, but finished league 3-2 with losses in two of its last three.
On Thursday, the teams came out firing with a barrage of early shots and fired off five each for the half with Zaragoza and Arcadia goalie Katherine Guerra making three saves apiece.
However, in the second half, even before the scoring barrage, the Apaches took control of possession and out-shot Crescenta Valley, 10-3, with a pair of Dana Ryan shots serving as the Falcons’ best chances though Ryan’s first shot – the first of the half for Crescenta Valley – came after Arcadia had already built a 3-0 lead.
“I definitely felt like we had a lot more possession and controlled the ball [in the second half],” Howard said. “We were just connecting our passes and taking shots.”
In the first half, CV had a header off a throw-in clang off the cross bar just 30 seconds in, Amy Rowe had a shot trickle through Guerra’s legs before she sprawled on it and the Chloe Ataya-led Falcons offense had more than its share of chances, but nothing found the net.
“I think if we finished there it would’ve been a different game, but you can’t play what-ifs,” Peterson said.
In the first meeting, Zaragoza shined with her all-around play and eight saves. Though the score wasn’t a good indicator, she was excellent on Thursday, as well, making eight saves again.
Crescenta Valley will head into the playoffs now with little momentum, but true to how she’s been all season with a roster that features 12 underclassmen, Peterson believes progress is being found each day.
“We definitely had opportunities and that’s exciting to see out of a young team,” she said. “Every day we’re progressing, we’re getting experience every day and we’re getting better.”
Twitter: @TCNGrantGordon
