Chatsworth Girls Win 2nd City Soccer Title

Sooner or later, someone might devise a way to stop the Chatsworth High girls’ soccer team.

For the second year in a row, the Chancellors plowed through Valley League and playoff opponents and, with a 3-0 victory over Palisades at Birmingham High on Saturday, placed another City Section championship trophy on their shelf.

Chatsworth first-year Coach Bob Horn has visions of a three-peat because all of his players will return next year.

“We were stronger this year than last year, and we’re going to be stronger next year than this year,” Horn said. “I don’t want to sound cocky, but we have a lot of weapons.”

Forward Kris Bassler and defender Kim Constantino shared the tournament MVP award. Horn suggested that midfielder Heather Gorman, who scored on a breakaway at the 17-minute mark in the first half to give the Chancellors a 1-0 lead, also should have shared in the award.

One minute after Gorman’s goal, a Palisades defensive error helped Bassler score a goal that pushed Chatsworth’s lead to 2-0.

“We played a 4-4-2 defense trying to control the middle,” Dolphin Coach Rick Horner said. “Our sweeper tried to come up and let (Bassler) have a one-on-one with our goalkeeper.”

With three minutes remaining, Constantino scored into an open goal from 20 yards after a collision between Chatsworth’s Sarah Murphy and Dolphin goalkeeper Amber Wuchitech sent the ball bouncing into the right flank. Wuchitech left the match sporting a black eye.

Chatsworth (15-1-1), the Valley League champion, thumped Belmont, 14-0, and edged City League champion San Pedro, 4-2, in the playoffs.

“I was thinking they might have underestimated us, but they didn’t,” Horner said.

The Dolphins (11-3-1), who outscored their opponents, 57-11, this season, upset El Camino Real, 2-1, and 1989 City runner-up Grant, 1-0, en route to the final.

Chatsworth crunched Palisades, 10-0, in a first-round playoff match a year ago.