NOTEBOOK : Title Hopes of East L.A. College’s Soccer Team Turn to Mud

The East Los Angeles College soccer team was prepared for just about anything in last Sunday’s state final against De Anza College. But the Huskies weren’t quite ready for the weather during the two-day tournament at Consumnes River College in Sacramento.

East L.A. lost, 2-1, in overtime on a muddy field, doused from heavy rainstorms over the previous three days.

Top-seeded De Anza (19-0-2) from Northern California played the match with shoes equipped with longer cleats for slick playing conditions. Only two East L.A. players had the studded shoes. The rest played with their regular molded shoes designed for dry surfaces and fine-cut grass.

The state tournament was the first time second-seeded East L.A. (20-3-1), the top team from Southern California, had played in inclement weather this season. East L.A. beat American River, 3-0, in the semifinals the previous day to advance to the title game.

“We anticipated a situation like this and we let the players know,” said East L.A. Coach Orlando Brenes. “We don’t have a whole lot of money and couldn’t buy shoes. We didn’t have them and it was a detrimental factor. When I saw the conditions, I knew we were in deep (trouble).”

The Huskies, making their third appearance in the tournament in seven years, were in good shape late in the second half against De Anza. East L.A. took a 1-0 lead on a 35-foot looping shot by Jose Recinos with eight minutes left in regulation. De Anza’s Troy Pinnock tied the game a few minutes later and scored again in the first overtime session to deny the Huskies their second state title in four years.

“We weren’t blown out and we were in the game,” Brenes said. “We gave De Anza fits and they had to earn the victory. We really have nothing to be ashamed of.”

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The Jefferson High girls’ basketball team opened the season, winning four of their six four games. Not bad for four days work.

Because of scheduling conflicts with the Eagle Rock tournament and Southeastern Conference games, the Democrats were twice forced to play two games in the same day.

“I’m going to check the schedule next time to make sure nothing like this happens again,” Coach Curtis Hughes said. “The girls were disciplined, but all these games helped get us in shape. Now we can run with anybody.”

Jefferson lost to Roosevelt in its season opener Nov. 30. The Democrats rebounded with a win over Cleveland in the first round of the Eagle Rock tournament.

Jefferson lost to Taft in tournament play Dec. 1, but the Democrats didn’t have to wait long to redeem themselves, winning two games the next day.

Jefferson beat visiting South Gate in a conference game. The team then fought rush-hour traffic to make its way to Eagle Rock to play Bell less than an hour later.