Mission Viejo Wins Area Showdown

The rain started as regulation ended, one coach was thrown out in overtime and one team beat its cross-town rival Tuesday for the right to play in the Southern Section Division I girls’ soccer final.

Plug any two teams into this mix and it would be an exciting game, make it over-the-hill neighbors Mission Viejo and Capistrano Valley from the prestigious South Coast League and it is a game that won’t soon be forgotten.

Mission Viejo won, 2-1, at Mission Viejo High School. In the 85th minute, Sarah Higham chipped the ball high from 20 yards out. It brushed off the fingertips of Capistrano Valley goalkeeper Shawna Draper and Jennifer Mescher followed it in for the winning goal on a disputed play.

Capistrano Valley Coach Hamid Sedehi said that the linesman, Chuck Hoger, told him the ball hit Mescher’s hand. The center official, Debbie Dakouzlian, said she had clear sight of the play and Hoger never indicated a hand ball to her.

“I was 10 yards parallel to the play and there was no hand ball,” Dakouzlian said.

Sedehi became incensed and was subsequently ejected from the game. He watched the remainder from the visitors’ grandstands.

“I said something I shouldn’t have,” Sedehi said, adding that the officiating was “way too inconsistent.”

An angry mob confronted the three officials after the game and they were escorted from the field by a Mission Viejo administrator.

Capistrano Valley (20-5-3) scored 20 seconds after the opening kick-off. Jennifer Tomczik took a throw-in for the Cougars and Liz Delgado trapped the ball at the top of the box, turned and shot it high into the right corner of the net.

The Diablos struck back in the first minute of the second half. Kate Desmond passed the ball through the Cougar defense where Amber Skallerud ran onto it and blasted it into the net for her 20th goal of the season.

Capistrano Valley attacked ferociously near the end of regulation as the rain began to descend harder. The Mission Viejo defense, led by Kristen Mescher, the sister of Jennifer Mescher, Suzy Margolis and Devon Grissom, fended off the attack as regulation time expired.

The game was not only a semifinal, it was also a grudge match--Mission Viejo and Capistrano Valley were 1-1-1 against each other in regular season. Capistrano Valley placed second in league and Mission Viejo placed third. League champion Mater Dei lost to Torrance, 1-0, in the quarterfinals.

Mission Viejo (18-6-2) will play Los Alamitos (14-4-4) in the final at 8 p.m. Friday at Cerritos Gahr High.