PREP ROUNDUP : Katella, Esperanza Battle to a Tie in Boys’ Soccer

After starting the week with Orange County’s No. 1 ranking, the Katella High School boys’ soccer team faltered again Friday by tying Esperanza, 0-0, in Anaheim.

With a loss and a tie this week, the Knights (11-3-3, 2-1-2 in the Empire League) have fallen into third place behind El Dorado and the Aztecs (8-2-6, 2-0-3). On Wednesday, El Dorado beat Katella, 4-1.

Esperanza was frustrated by two of the five saves Katella goalkeeper Justin Welham made in the second half. With 35 minutes remaining, Andy Ray’s kick rolled off a diving Welham in front of the goal. Before Esperanza could rebound the slow rolling ball, Welham crawled over and slapped the ball out of bounds.

Sal Hernandez’s head shot from in front of the goal was deflected over the net by Welham to thwart another Esperanza threat with 18 minutes left.

“Justin played an outstanding game and made the key saves for us,” Katella Coach Ray Smith said. “Esperanza shut us down. We were free on offense many times, but we weren’t free to shoot. They did a good job defensively.”

With 90 seconds to play, Jose Figueroa had Katella’s best shot, but his kick from 10 yards was blocked by goalkeeper Kenny Hall.

“The key to our team is defense,” Esperanza Coach Kino Oaxaca said. “We’ve only allowed one goal in league so far. Defenseman Troy Duncan, a senior co-captain, did an excellent job.”