Bonita’s Streak Ended

Bonita High is streaky clean no more.

The Bearcats had their 96-game winning streak in the Valle Vista League ended Tuesday night in a 0-0 tie with San Dimas.

The streak dated to the middle of the 1994-95 season, when the Valle Vista League was formed, and stands as the Southern Section record. Whittier La Serna is second with 61 from 1994-2000.

The Bearcats (21-1-1, 8-0-1 in league), led offensively by forwards Lisa Jensen and Lindsay Duke, outshot the Saints, but to no avail. San Dimas played a physical game and converged in front of the goalmouth at every opportunity.

Bonita Coach Bob Phillippe, whose team’s only loss has been to St. Lucy’s in the Claremont tournament championship game, said his players were disappointed with the tie but reacted well to the streak’s end.

“Actually, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be,” Phillippe said. “Our girls played hard. The score wasn’t that way without heart.

“And you have to give credit to San Dimas. They left their hearts out there on the field. They blocked the goal, and they kicked the ball out of bounds a lot. But they did what they had to do, and they were happy not to lose.”

So were the Bearcats, who still have a league unbeaten streak, now at 97 games. La Serna holds the Southern Section record for league unbeaten streaks at 111 set from 1991-00.

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Tenacious D: Ayala has a leg up in the Sierra League race after the Bulldogs (12-5-2, 4-0) defeated defending-champion Diamond Bar, 1-0, last week, followed by the Brahmas’ 3-0 victory over St. Lucy’s.

“St. Lucy’s overlooked them,” Ayala Coach Jeff Allen said. “This is just what we wanted. It really helps to get that jump, with your momentum, your confidence, everything.”

Ayala has done it primarily with defense.

Goalkeepers Karen Bardsley and Veronica Simonton have combined for nine shutouts this season. Only one goal, given up by Simonton against Nogales, had been surrendered in league play going into a game Wednesday against St. Lucy’s.

Bardsley, a senior who will play at Cal State Fullerton next season, and Simonton, a junior, have split time equally in the nets, with Simonton starting and Bardsley playing the second half.

“They go half and half, and they’re awesome about it,” Allen said. “They handle it great.”

Simonton gets to start after playing in place of Bardsley last year. Bardsley broke her left tibia as a sophomore and endured a difficult recovery that sidelined her for the season.

“It atrophied and I had to rehabilitate it all season,” said Bardsley, who doesn’t mind sharing the workload.

“It doesn’t bug me at all, as long as I get to play.”

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Marked improvement: La Verne Lutheran’s 4-7-3 record, including a 1-4 mark in the San Joaquin League, may look unsightly, but to the Trojans, it’s not too bad.

Especially when they consider last season. Lutheran, then a freelance team in its first season, finished 0-13.

The Trojans had only one goal, by Brittney Hafer in the second-to-last game against Rolling Hills Prep.

Lauren Peterson