THE COLLEGES / IRENE GARCIA : A Stately Finish for Moorpark

It’s no secret that soccer isn’t this country’s most-popular sport and the infrequent media coverage it receives proves it.

Sure, there was ample hype for a brief period during the summer while the World Cup was played in the United States, but that kind of exposure is rare.

Professional, semipro and college soccer teams don’t receive nearly as much attention as football, basketball and baseball programs.

Take the Moorpark College women’s soccer team, for example.

Successful as it has been, the program will live in the shadow of the equally successful football team each fall.

Such was the case again this year. But enough is enough. The women must be commended for another remarkable season.

The Raiders, seeded fourth in Southern California, upset top-seeded Cypress, 3-2, on Saturday and earned a spot in this weekend’s state tournament in Sacramento.

It will mark the program’s second trip to the final four since 1991. The Raiders beat De Anza that year for the title.

The Moorpark team that will travel by bus to Cosumnes River College and face defending champion De Anza on Saturday at 2 p.m. could be just as good. The Raiders placed second to another final four team, Bakersfield, in the powerful Western State Conference and looked impressive at Cypress against what was supposed to be a tougher, more experienced opponent.

“I’ll admit, we’re not technically as talented as other teams,” Moorpark first-year Coach Ken Dale said. “But we hustle a lot and we scrap for the ball. We also fight back hard if we’re down.”

The Raiders have rebounded after a disappointing 3-6-3 record last season.

It was a disheartening finish for a group of athletes who came primarily from successful area high school programs.

“In that case (last year), being overshadowed by other sports was a blessing,” Dale said. “Last season was tough for those players because most of them were used to winning.”

Many enrolled at Moorpark because of the school’s past triumphs in women’s soccer. Seems like the program is back on track.

This season Moorpark (11-3-3) has three All-WSC first-team picks--defender Summer Salvatera, forward Vanessa Macen and midfielder Heather Heit--and three second-team selections--forward Christy McGowan, midfielder Mariah Ventre and striker Danika Molyneux .

Macen is the Raiders’ top scorer with 12 goals. Goalkeepers Amy Fisher and Shannon Henry have been the team’s most-impressive performers.

Fisher, who had 26 saves against Cypress, has 73 this season and six shutouts.

Henry has 36 saves and four shutouts. In 14 conference games, Fisher and Henry allowed a total of seven goals.

“No doubt, they’ve been a big reason for our success,” Dale said. “Amy has been absolutely brilliant this year. There’s no other way to describe it.”

After the team struggles of 1993, even some of Moorpark’s returning players have been surprised by the team’s success.

One key player, Shannon Henry, missed the regional playoff game against Cypress because she scheduled an Alaskan vacation months earlier. She was among a handful of players, Dale says, who doubted the team’s ability to win.

“She said it really never occurred to her that we would make the playoffs,” Dale said.

Henry’s Alaskan jaunt will end in time for her to rejoin the Raiders in Sacramento.

“It’s a good thing because we’re going to need her,” Dale said.

Dale was hired at Moorpark in August. He was the boys’ soccer coach at Simi Valley High last season and was an assistant women’s coach at Pepperdine University the past two seasons.

He also was a men’s assistant at Radford University in Virginia.

A native of Arizona, Dale played at Kennesaw College in Georgia and in a Tucson semipro league for several years.

“I interviewed for jobs in Texas and Kansas over the summer, but they didn’t work out,” Dale said.

Bet he’s really glad now. Moorpark is not such a bad place to be, even if the soccer program doesn’t sit in the limelight.