El Dorado Has to Settle for Tie With Cypress in Girls’ Soccer

El Dorado’s 1-1 tie with Cypress in Empire League girls’ soccer Tuesday left Hawk Coach Jeff Holcomb with mud on his pants and a bone to pick with the referees.

The game was played in pouring rain and controlled by El Dorado, which outshot Cypress, 17-8. The Hawks took a 1-0 lead with five minutes left in the first half on sophomore Courtney Hall’s kick from midfield, which sailed over the head and off the fingertips of goalkeeper Kim Lumsdaine.

In the second half, Cypress (11-2-2, 3-0-1) scored on Amanda Brown’s disputed direct kick from the left side of the goal with 25 minutes left to play.

Standing on the sideline in three inches of mud, Holcomb screamed at the referees, arguing that they had called an indirect kick and that the goal should be disallowed. After getting no response, Holcomb ran onto the field. He was given a warning and told to stay off the field. The goal stood.

“The ref raised his hand signaling an indirect kick,” Holcomb said. “Next thing I know they kicked a direct kick and scored. The refs lost us the game.”

The Hawks (3-3-7, 1-0-2) were plagued by penalties and fouls, having 12 offsides calls in the second half. Five of those calls were on fast breaks and took away El Dorado’s chances of scoring.

The result left the Hawks with their seventh tie this season.

“We haven’t been able to finish anyone off this year,” Holcomb said. “We keep improving, but we need to put our opponents away.”