SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION II GIRLS’ SOCCER PLAYOFFS : Los Alamitos Wins in Overtime, 1-0

Laguna Hills had the stingy defense and the heart, but Los Alamitos had a scrappy midfielder, Brandie Hayungs, on its side in a first-round Division II girls’ soccer game Thursday, played in a driving rain storm.

Hayungs, a 5-foot-7 senior, scored for Los Alamitos in the second half of a 20-minute overtime period, giving the Griffins a 1-0 victory over Laguna Hills at Los Alamitos High School.

Los Alamitos (16-3-2), ranked sixth in Orange County and the Empire League’s top team, had plenty of chances to score against Laguna Hills (16-8-1), the No. 2 team from the Pacific Coast League, but each was rebuffed by the Hawks defense.

But with 2 minutes 30 seconds remaining in overtime, Hayungs broke through in front of the goal and tapped the ball past goalkeeper Sarah Lang, who had turned back 18 previous Griffin shots.

“She (Hayungs) especially came through at the end,” Los Alamitos Coach Mark Morin said. “She’s energetic, and as a captain, she leads the team with her attitude, and that came through in overtime.”

Laguna Hills Coach Kevin Macare, who had seen his team narrowly lose the battle for the league championship this season, said he was surprised to play such a strong team in the first round.

“Our defense kept us in it all year, but today we didn’t put our opportunities away,” Macare said. “Some games, we’d sneak the ball in to keep us going, but we couldn’t do it today.”

Morin said the weather conditions were a factor in the game.

“We are a finesse team, and if we have to dig the balls out of puddles and we are hitting shots on a slippery surface, we don’t do as well,” he said.

In other Division II games:

Sunny Hills 1, Orange 0--Freshman Jenny Cunningham scored the game’s only goal after an assist from Sunny Hills’ leading scorer Jaime Gardiner in the first half. Tough defense and goal keeper Danielle Broschak kept Orange scoreless.

Estancia 2, Long Beach Millikan 0--Tina Tavares and Lauren Weaver scored for host Estancia early in the second half. Estancia allowed Long Beach Millikan across mid-field only three times.

Kennedy 2, El Dorado 1--Adrienne Poan scored twice in the second half for host Kennedy (15-2-3), the Garden Grove League champion. Poan’s game-winner came on a penalty kick with 12 minutes left. Kelly Bogan scored in the first half for El Dorado (11-5-3).

El Modena 2, La Habra 1 (4 OT)--Freshman Aja Cordova, who rallied El Modena (15-4-3) with her second-half goal that tied the score, scored the winning goal in the fourth overtime period after an assist by Chrystal Sice. La Habra record is 15-6-1.

Canyon 1, Esperanza 0--Krista Broughton, on a free kick, scooted the ball through winds, a water-trenched field and Esperanza’s goalie for the game’s only goal. Goalie Tina Thompson, who will be attending San Diego State next fall, had eight saves for Canyon (22-2-0).