Agoura Opens Defense of 2-A Title : Chargers Seeded No. 1 in Southern Section Girls Soccer Playoffs

Twelve months after winning its first Southern Section 2-A Division girls soccer championship, Agoura High must face the challenge bred by its success--what to do for an encore.

So far, the Chargers have done plenty. Agoura is 16-1-3 and seeded first among 32 teams in the playoffs, which begin today. So much for a team resting on its laurels.

“This team is as hard-working, and more versatile, than any I’ve ever coached,” Coach Dave Godwin said. “In a lot of ways, we’re better than we were last year, especially on defense.”

Which is quite a feat in itself. Gone are Tracy Redman and Diahn Metzner, the respective 1986 Southern Section 2-A offensive and defensive players of the year. Rebuilding at Agoura wasn’t a concern--it was supposed to be a crisis.

Godwin, however, didn’t panic. Agoura found strength from within despite the players it was without.

“We lost our captain from defense and our top scorer from last season,” Godwin said. “Our returning unit was basically sound, we just needed to get the right combination of girls on the field and a few goals into the net.”

The Agoura combination includes returning junior strikers Dawn Krenik and Wendy Bennett and sophomore fullback Lisa Ferragamo. All were All-Southern Section picks in 1986. Sophomore Tricia Arledge, playing her first season as goalkeeper, has 13 shutouts and has allowed only eight goals in 20 games. The team set a Southern Section record with 10 consecutive shutouts.

After finishing 21-0-2 last season, the team lost for the first time since 1985, 2-1 to Royal in December. Agoura regrouped to easily win its second straight Frontier League title, but Godwin said it won’t be as easy to repeat as 2-A champion because the playoff alignment has been expanded to include 12 leagues--five more than last season.

“I’m a positive negativist,” Godwin said. “I have to look at it from the standpoint that our chances are one in 32. But truthfully, I think we have as good a chance as anybody.”

Agoura plays host to Wilson, which finished third in the Sierra League, at 5 p.m. today in a first-round match.