Gaeta Leads Ocean View to Upset of Laguna Hills

Mud dripped from Krista Gaeta’s face but her grin matched the brightness of her play Tuesday in Ocean View’s 2-0 upset of second-seeded Laguna Hills in the second round of the Southern Section Division II girls’ soccer tournament at Ocean View.

Gaeta scored two goals to lead Ocean View (12-8-3) to its first appearance in the quarterfinals, in which it will play Thursday at Canyon (14-6-2).

Laguna Hills (20-3-3) is ranked No. 3 in the county and No. 2 in the Southern Section Division II poll. The Hawks were undefeated in the Pacific Coast League this season. Unranked Ocean View defeated Rosary in the last game of regular season to win the Golden West League title.

“We were the underdogs, so this is the greatest. I’m so happy,” Gaeta said after her team had taken a celebratory dive-roll in a large mud puddle.

Laguna Hills dominated the first 20 minutes, but Gaeta was fouled from behind in the 26th minute to give her a direct free kick from about 20 yards out. Laguna Hills set up a wall to block her view.

“I was aiming for the far post and I wanted to kick it as hard as I could,” she said. “I just went for it.”

Gaeta kicked the ball high in a perfect arch that went into the middle of the goal above the arms of goalkeeper Deborah Mundis.

Trailing, 1-0, at halftime, Laguna Hills came out strong for the second half and had several good opportunities to score.

“It was so nerve-racking with [a one-goal lead],” Gaeta said.

Gaeta, a center midfielder, calmed the Seahawks’ nerves in the 72nd minute by scoring a goal from about 30 yards out.

“It was a bad trap and I went to cross it and it went in. I was shocked,” she said.

Gaeta, Ocean View’s leading scorer this season with 17 goals, covered her head with her hands and was swamped by her teammates. Ocean View Coach Keith Martin wasn’t surprised by Gaeta’s performance.

“She’s very knowledgeable. She’s a student of the game,” he said.

Both teams had trouble with the rainy conditions. Several large puddles formed on the field and the ball either skipped wildly or stopped dead whenever it hit them.

“I think that was the key factor,” Martin said. “[Laguna Hills is] a very skilled team.”

In other Division II games:

Canyon 3, University 0--Michelle Bannister had a goal and an assist for visiting Canyon (14-6-2). University finished 14-10.

Whittier La Serna 1, Valencia 0--Sarah Lazaro scored in the third minute for top-seeded La Serna (28-0-2). La Serna lost in the second round last season.

In Division III:

Brea Olinda 1, Riverside Poly 0--Kelly Peterson scored on a free kick in the 15th minute for host Brea, which plays the Chino Hills Ayala-Newhall Hart winner. Brea (16-7-1) posted its 11th shutout. Riverside Poly ended 17-5-4.

El Modena at Long Beach Poly--The game was postponed until today at 3 because of inclement weather.