GIRLS’ SOCCER ROUNDUP : El Modena Finally Able to Move On to the Next Level

El Modena girls’ soccer Coach Jeff Pearson had added pressure going into Thursday’s Southern Section Division II quarterfinal against Ventura.

The host Vanguards had made it to the quarterfinals each of the last three seasons, but had never advanced. But Thursday’s 2-0 victory relieved the burden.

“Reaching the quarters three straight years was definitely on my mind,” Pearson said. “I felt it was partly my job to get us over the hump.”

El Modena (21-5-1) will play the winner of today’s Redlands-Long Beach Poly game in the semifinals on Tuesday.

The Vanguards wasted little time in scoring their first goal. Three minutes into the game, junior Stephanie Esparza took a pass from junior Nicole Terry and punched it to the left of Ventura goalkeeper Marisa Gaines.

El Modena’s best chance to score again in the first half failed when its leading scorer, Kaylee Whitfield, lost control of the ball while Gaines was scrambling to get back in goal.

The Vanguards continued to play tough defense in the second half, keeping the ball away from Ventura’s top two scorers, Maggie Dwire and Natalie Dorr.

“Defense (was the difference),” Pearson said. “We shut their attackers down and kept them intact. Our midfield won everything when it came down to crunch time.”

El Modena put the game out of reach 30 minutes into the second half when Terry scored on her own rebound, pushing the ball through the box into the right of the net.

Ventura defender Johannah Caldwell shut down Whitfield for most of the game. She had only one shot in the first half and was quiet until Caldwell left the game because of an injury with 10 minutes left.

The Vanguards had several scoring chances late. Whitfield, who has 30 goals this season, put two shots over the crossbar and Robin Wadsworth missed two shots wide. Senior goalkeeper Marie Dillon had 10 saves to earn the shutout.

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In another Division III game:

Laguna Hills 2, La Crescenta Crescenta Valley 1--Tiffany Boykin and Stacey Roberts scored first-half goals for Laguna Hills (15-7-3), which has outscored opponents, 13-3, in the playoffs this season. Michele Cena scored 13 minutes into the second half for Crescenta Valley (19-2-3), cutting the lead to 2-1. Deanna Moore had six saves for Laguna Hills.

In Division III:

Brea Olinda 1, Diamond Bar 0--Erin Wright scored in the 72nd minute to lead Brea Olinda (19-2-5). Goalkeeper Christine Geske had 10 saves, bringing her season shutout total to 16. Brea Olinda will take on Rowland Heights Rowland on Tuesday in the semifinals.