Marina Gets the Jump on Edison

Marina held off a strong second-half attack from Edison and defeated the Chargers, 1-0, in a Sunset League girls’ soccer opener Thursday at Edison.

The game was considered crucial to both teams in a league race with no clear-cut favorite. The seventh-ranked Chargers (11-3-3) defeated Marina twice last season on their way to the title. The No. 9 Vikings (11-5-2) are bidding for their first title in five years.

Marina’s Heather Kindschi scored the only goal 30 minutes into the game. She slammed a free kick over the wall from 15 yards out. Edison goalkeeper Cathryn Perkins knocked down the ball but was unable to get a handle on it, and it bounced over her head and into the goal. It was one of only four shots on goal for the Vikings, even though they controlled play for much of the first half.

After taking only one shot in the first half, the Chargers lofted five in the second half to Marina’s one. However, Marina goalkeeper Cari Delaney made two crucial slide tackles on breakaways to help preserve the victory.

“Cari came up with a couple of huge saves for us,” Marina Coach Tino Ray Younger said. “Arguably, that was her best game of the season so far and it came at a time when we really needed it.”

Delaney got help from her defense late in the game. Junior Lizzie Torres stole the ball twice in the final 10 minutes, stopping two potential scoring opportunities by the Chargers.

“We expected them to come out more aggressive in the second half,” Younger said. “But we hung in there and did what we needed to do, and in this league, if we can come out and spoil some people’s days along the way, even better.”