El Camino Real Gets on a Roll

It took the Woodland Hills El Camino Real girls’ soccer team a while to get warmed up in its City Section quarterfinal game Friday. But once it did, there was no stopping the Conquistadores, who scored three goals in a 90-second span at the start of the second half en route to a 6-0 victory over visiting Palisades.

Nicole Walberg scored on a rebound in the 43rd minute to break a scoreless tie, then Samantha Spencer scored a minute later on a high shot to the right corner from 30 yards out. Kandice McLaughlin scored from the same spot shortly after the Conquistadores gained possession of the ensuing kickoff and second-seeded El Camino Real (16-3-1) was off and running.

“I didn’t have to say much at halftime. The girls knew what the problem was--determination and attitude,” El Camino Real Coach Scott Holloway said. “Anything short of [the finals at] UCLA and these girls will be disappointed. We can’t live with losing in the quarters.”

The defending champion Conquistadores host third-seeded Granada Hills on Wednesday for the right to advance to the City finals on March 2 at Drake Stadium. El Camino Real, the higher seeded team because of a coin toss, and Granada Hills split their two meetings in West Valley League play.

Spencer, McLaughlin and Giuliana Facio scored the final three goals as the Conquistadores outshot Palisades (14-7-1) by a 22-7 margin. El Camino has outscored its two playoff opponents, 17-0.

Steve Galluzzo

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In the Southern Section Division I quarterfinals:

Aliso Niguel 2, Dana Hills 0--Stacy Lindstrom assisted Kelly Finkenberg to break a tie in the 52nd minute, and Lindstrom scored unassisted 19 minutes later for top-seeded Aliso Niguel (19-3-3), which plays a semifinal Tuesday at Capistrano Valley, a 2-0 winner over Los Alamitos.Anaheim Esperanza 2, Etiwanda 1--Erin Clewett had two goals to lead the host Aztecs (21-2-4), who next play second-seeded San Clemente, a 5-0 winner over Chino Hills Ayala.

In the Division II quarterfinals:

Huntington Beach Edison 2, Westlake Village Westlake 1--Edison (20-1-6) got goals from Amanda Drager and Jane Wyche, the latter in the 71st minute, to set up a semifinal against Irvine Woodbridge, a 6-0 winner over Temescal Canyon.

Crescenta Valley 1, Newport Harbor 0--Brittany Del Sodato scored with only 50 seconds remaining in the second sudden death to lead host Crescenta Valley (20-6-3) over third-seeded Newport Harbor (14-6-4). The Falcons, who face Canyon Country Canyon, a 3-2 overtime winner over Claremont.

In the Division III quarterfinals:

Santa Ana Mater Dei 2, Riverside King 1 (OT)--Angela Chavez’s header off Erin Bevaqua’s crossing pass eight minutes into overtime sent third-seeded Mater Dei (16-4-6) into a semifinal against South Torrance.

Placentia El Dorado 2, Glendora St. Lucy’s 1 (OT)--El Dorado’s Vanessa Lewis scored her second goal at 113 minutes to send the fourth-seeded Golden Hawks (23-3-3) into the semifinals against top-seeded Santa Margarita.

In the Division V quarterfinals:

Pasadena La Salle 1, Brentwood 0 (OT)--Cassie Dombrowaski scored on a Cari Umland assist for host La Salle (19-3-3) in the 103rd minute to upset second-seeded Brentwood.

In the City Section boys quarterfinals:

South Gate 0, Lincoln 0 (South Gate won on penalty kicks, 3-1)--Mauricio Macedo, Rudolfo Mondragon and Javier Maravilla converted penalty kicks as 11th-seeded South Gate (18-4-1) beat third-seeded Lincoln (13-2-1).

When City semifinals are played on Wednesday, South Gate will play L.A. Roosevelt, which upset Wilmington Banning, 2-0.