BOYS’ SOCCER ROUNDUP : Los Alamitos Loses Its Third Game in a Row

A week ago, Los Alamitos was ranked third in the county and had lost only two games.

On Wednesday, the ninth-ranked Griffins lost their third consecutive game, falling 2-1 to second-ranked Fountain Valley in a Sunset League game. And suddenly, they are staring at the possibility of not making the playoffs, much less losing their top-10 ranking.

“We should definitely not be 1-3, but we are,” Los Alamitos Coach Mauricio Ingrassia said. “Now it’s time to show some character and win some games.”

Said Fountain Valley Coach Kevin Smith: “They’re a team with a 1-3 record in league that could beat anybody. Now maybe they can help us out and start beating some of these other (Sunset League) teams for us.”

But if Los Alamitos (9-5-3, 1-3) continues to wait until the last five minutes of games to make a move, it might not win again. The Griffins were outshot 5-3, outscored, 2-0, and outplayed in the first half. Keith Hedenberg tipped in Jeremy Meltebarger’s blast off a free kick for Fountain Valley’s first goal, then Joey Bove booted a penalty kick past goalie Jon Wertenbroek for the Barons’ second.

Los Alamitos’ Jeff Leitner woke up the Griffin sideline with a shot past Fountain Valley keeper Scott Hainlen with five minutes left. Midfielder Marco Materazzi kept up the pressure with two shots in the next three minutes, but Hainlen was equal to the challenge on both attempts.

“We’ve been getting unlucky,” Ingrassia said. “Marco put the ball on target and that’s what we ask for. But the keeper came up with the save.”

Said Smith, whose team improved to 13-3 and 3-1 in the Sunset League: “Scott does a good job. He’s moving real well in the goal and he definitely saved us.”