Burroughs girls’ soccer grinds out win at Crescenta Valley
LA CRESCENTA – A week that started with a momentous tie at home for the Burroughs High girls’ soccer team concluded with a huge victory on the road Friday afternoon.
A clutch offense coupled with a gritty and pesky defense fetched the Indians a 2-0 victory at Crescenta Valley in a Pacific League showdown.
With the triumph, Burroughs improved to 13-3-2 and 8-1-2 in league with only one match against archrival Burbank left for Thursday.
Burroughs, which began the week with a 1-1 tie versus defending league champion Arcadia on Monday, is part of a three-way hunt for the league title with the Apaches (9-6-2, 7-0-2 heading into Friday) and Falcons (9-6-5, 7-1-2).
The Indians’ path to victory included two facets: strong finishing on offense and a harassing defense.
Burroughs received a goal and an assist from freshman Lauryn Bailey, while Emily McHorney added a score and Abbie Riggs chipped in an assist.
On defense, Burroughs coach Brady Riggs made it his mission to lock down Falcons freshman sensation Chloe Ataya, who scored two goals versus the Indians in a 2-2 tie in the teams’ first meeting in Burbank on Jan. 12.
“The one thing we did is we have a lot of respect for one of their forwards,” Brady Riggs said. “[Ataya is] really a good, young player and I had a really good defender, who basically made her life difficult, in Ava Kramer.”
Burroughs’ defenders adroitly danced on the line between physical and over-the-top with yellow cards doled out to two defenders, while a handful of other physical fouls resulted in free kicks.
“A lot of players got taken out in this game,” Crescenta Valley freshman Dana Ryan said, “but Burroughs was smart. They had players flopping and wasting time and maybe we would have done the same if we were in the same position.”
Yet, for every foul by the Indians, a Falcons’ scoring attack was successfully thwarted.
Burroughs established control in the 11th minute when a cross from Bailey was one-timed from 10 yard by McHorney for a 1-0 lead.
Bailey was quite the sparkplug and playmaker for the Indians as the freshman received a pass along the sidelines from Riggs in the 52nd minute.
As Bailey corralled the pass, she spun around one defender, broke down a second and flipped in a 12-yard goal before a third Crescenta Valley defender could close in time. The score gave the Indians a 2-0 lead.
Crescenta Valley tried to counter two minutes later as Ryan and Ataya were about eight yards from the net in a scramble on a loose ball after a save from senior goalie Samantha Martinez, who finished with five saves.
While Ryan had a look, Kramer successful cleared the ball before Ataya could take a shot.
“My job is to stop and deny her any balls,” Kramer said of Ataya. “I need to hold her off the line and prevent her from scoring.”
The effort, more than the loss, came as a disappointment to a few Falcons.
“We just didn’t want it, I don’t think, as a whole team,” Crescenta Valley freshman Ashlin Cuesta said. “We definitely had players who wanted it, but not the whole team and that definitely showed.”
