SOUTHERN SECTION 4-A BOYS’ SOCCER : Ocean View Again Proves It Can Play a Good Game

It took a moment or two to breathe a sigh of relief, but the Ocean View boys’ soccer players got around to swaggering like the Southern Section champions they had just become.

So what if they had just barely held on for a 3-2 victory over La Verne Damien Friday? The Seahawks knew how to talk the talk.

“Boy, other teams are really lucky the season is over,” midfielder Ryan Robertson said. “The way we’re playing right now, nothing can stop us. Nothing.”

It was that sort of confidence--or arrogance--that got the Seahawks into the final. They had dominated the Sunset League and breezed through the playoffs with an air of invincibility.

In fact, the Seahawks last loss was to Santa Ana in late December. They are 15-0-1 since.

That can’t-lose attitude was apparent throughout much of Friday’s match at Gahr High School. Ocean View (22-4-3) played its game of touch-and-run and ran Damien ragged through much of the match.

The Spartans (20-6-2) were unable to contain Ocean View’s speed, and that led to quick strikes.

Midway through the first half, Robertson fired a 30-foot shot that was deflected by goalkeeper Nagy Zoltan. But forward Daniel Tomlin burst in from the the right side and scored on the rebound to give Ocean View a 1-0 lead.

Leading 2-0 in the second half, the Seahawks ran rings around the Damien defense. Chris Martin passed to Tomlin on the left wing, and Tomlin touched the ball to Ryan Schomberg breaking down the middle. Without breaking stride, Schomberg fired a shot into the net from 20 feet out.

“We start passing like that we’re going to score,” said Robertson, who had the Seahawks’ other goal on a header in the first half. “We’ve been playing this way for the past two months.”

The Seahawks, though, stumbled to the finish.

Tony DaVoght beat two Ocean View defenders, then scored to cut the deficit to 3-1 11 minutes into the second half. From that point, the Spartans controlled play.

Damien outshot Ocean View, 10-5, in the second half and kept the pressure on in the final 10 minutes.

The Seahawks had trouble on defense in part because of injuries. Defenders Kevin Coye (foot) and Radim Konecny (ankle) didn’t finish the match. Ocean View was also without defender Jayson Holmgren, who received a red card in the semifinal match against Santa Maria and had to sit out.

Damone Hughes scored off a corner kick with 10 minutes left to cut the Ocean View lead to one. The Spartans kept up the pressure, but goalkeeper Brian Grace made two saves, and Damien missed an opportunity on a corner kick.

“I was sweating it a little at the end,” Schomberg said. “We kind of let it get away from us at the end. But when it was over, we were the best.”