HIGH SCHOOL SOCCER CITY SECTION PLAYOFFS : Top-Seeded San Fernando Stunned by San Pedro’s Second-Half Rally

San Pedro High put on its best Jack and the Beanstalk performance Wednesday afternoon, chopping down top-seeded San Fernando, 4-2, in the opening round of the City Section boys’ soccer playoffs.

“We were giant-killers,” said San Pedro forward Chris Wirtz, who put the match out of reach by scoring the visiting Pirates’ fourth consecutive goal on a breakaway.

San Pedro (10-4) came into the match as the No. 3 entrant from the Southern Pacific League, but it brought down San Fernando (18-3-2) with four goals in the final 43 minutes.

San Fernando dominated play in the first half and was rewarded with goals by Arturo Morales and Raul Rivas.

Morales scored on a rebound in the 27th minute after a corner kick from Fabian Galvan and Rivas finished off a nifty pass from Hector Molina 10 minutes later.

But with San Pedro down, 2-0, Jorge Ortiz took charge. Ortiz scored on a penalty kick three minutes into first-half injury time and assisted on two second-half goals to give the Pirates the lead.

The turning point came when San Fernando goalkeeper Juan Gomez fouled Wirtz in the penalty area, setting up Ortiz’s penalty kick. Wirtz dribbled the ball deep into the 18-yard box, but Morales had cleared the ball from danger when Gomez grabbed Wirtz’s leg.

“My goalie lost his head,” San Fernando Coach Arturo Vazquez said. “He didn’t hear (Morales) tell him he had the ball.”

Ortiz hammered a low, one-bounce penalty shot past Gomez for the goal.

“The penalty kick set up the second half for us,” San Pedro Coach Martin Mira said. “When you’re down two goals, it stays in your head. When you’re only one goal down, anything can happen.”

Seven minutes into the second half, Angel Mariscal headed in San Pedro’s tying goal off a 20-yard free kick that Ortiz chipped into the penalty area.

San Pedro wore San Fernando down the rest of the way and broke the deadlock in the 73rd minute when Gomez couldn’t control a rebound off a 30-yard blast from Ortiz. Jorge Pena finished it off to make it 3-2.