Flintridge Prep girls’ soccer looks for first title at Pacifica’s expense
In a CIF Southern Section girls’ soccer postseason rife with upsets, the only bracket that played out as the rankings and pairings suggested was Division III.
There, third-seeded Flintridge Prep will attempt to win its first CIF crown against top-seeded Garden Grove Pacifica at Downey Warren High on Saturday at 10 a.m.
That match-up is the only only that features two seeded squads through all seven divisions.
“Pacifica has a big front that’s really dynamic,” Flintridge Prep coach Esteban Chavez said. “It’s sort of pick your poison with them, but you know we haven’t seen all that much from them and we’re more focused on ourselves than with anyone else.”
Saturday marks the first meeting of the squads, who reached the title match via different paths.
Prep League champion Flintridge Prep (23-4-2) enters as a juggernaut on the heels of a 3-2 semifinal win over Mayfair.
The Rebels are second in goals scored in the Southern Section, according to maxpreps.com, with 144 goals, behind Palmdale Aerospace Academy (151 goals), and have a section-best 136 assists.
“What’s most impressive about Flintridge Prep are the forwards,” Mayfair coach Sal Marroquin said. “They’re great finishers and super aggressive and they clearly tired out our defense.”
Rebels senior forward Julia Gonzalez is the section’s No. 4-leading scorer with 49 goals and 12 assists and has tallied four goals and one assist this postseason.
In case Pacifica keys on Gonzalez, there’s always junior midfielder Helen Schaefer (27 goals and 24 assists), freshman Makenna Dominguez (24 goals and 23 assists) and junior Mika Celeste (19 goals and 27 assists) who can pick up the slack for Flintridge Prep.
“I think it’s got to the point where Helen and I can read each other’s minds,” Gonzalez joked. “We just have this bond, she knows where to send me the perfect ball and I know the same for her. It’s just fun playing with her and knowing we’re one step away from a championship.”
The Rebels have won four postseason matches so far by a combined score of 20-2.
While Pacifica’s defense is certainly very good, the Rebels’ offense just thumped a great defense.
Flintridge Prep picked up a win over a Mayfair squad that had allowed nine goals in 26 matches. The Monsoons hadn’t even surrendered more than one goal in any match this season before Tuesday.
“To me, that’s the biggest challenge for whoever faces them next,” Marroquin said. “I don’t know if anyone in this division has seen forwards like this.”
Pacifica (21-3-3) heads into Saturday on a nine-match winning streak and, outside of a challenge from Cypress, rolled to an Empire League crown.
The Mariners have found comfort in blowouts and close matches, with an advantage in the latter versus Flintridge Prep.
Pacifica has participated in 13 matches decided by a goal or less and is 8-2-3 in those contests.
Pacifica survived a first-round flop with a 1-0 victory over Redlands in overtime on Feb. 15 and notched similar 1-0 triumphs over Camarillo and Canyon Country Canyon in the next two rounds.
The Mariners’ most decisive victory this postseason was a 2-0 win over No. 4 seed Corona Centennial in Tuesday’s semifinal.
On defense, Pacifica has allowed only 16 goals this season, while surrendering just one score over the last nine matches dating back to Jan. 26.
Solving Pacifica senior forward Alexa Riddle may be the Rebels’ biggest hurdle, as the striker has tallied 17 goals and 11 assists in 19 matches.
Win or lose, Saturday likely does not mark the end of the season for Flintridge Prep, which will likely participate in the upcoming CIF Southern California Regional Tournament. Pairings will be released Sunday.
