SOUTHERN SECTION 4-A BOYS’ SOCCER PLAYOFFS
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In the other 4-A semifinal:
La Verne Damien 2, Santa Ana 1--Santa Ana’s bid for a second consecutive 4-A title ended with an overtime loss at Damien.
Kareem Lee scored on a penalty kick 8 minutes 33 seconds into the first 10 minutes of overtime to give Damien the lead. The Spartans (20-5-2) then held the Saints without a shot in the second 10-minute overtime period to advance into Friday’s final.
The Saints claimed the match should never have reached overtime.
With Santa Ana leading, 1-0, in the second half, Damien’s Matt Bradbury took a crossing pass in front of the net. The ball appeared to hit Bradbury in the hand just before he scored to tie the game.
“It hit me in the upper arm,” Bradbury said. “It was a good no-call.”
Said Santa Ana Coach Bob Paciezik: “Sometimes you can’t prepare for everything. Sometimes you have to beat the referees too.”
Santa Ana (16-7-3) took a 1-0, when Rafael Serrano scored on a header midway through the first half.
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