Pacifica Christian boys’ soccer advances to CIF semifinals

Pacifica Christian did so much at the start and just enough at the finish of its CIF Southern Section boys’ soccer quarterfinal, sending the rising program to its first final four, an outlandish prospect not so long ago.

Freshman striker Dean Soldan set up both goals as the fifth-seeded Tritons took a quick two-goal lead Tuesday afternoon — the first right after sophomore goalkeeper Kasper Batley’s astonishing one-on-one save — then held on through a late, frenzied Santa Barbara Bishop Diego assault to secure a 2-1 Division 8 triumph at Vanguard University’s Soccer Complex.

Jacob Attwater hammered home Soldan’s rippling feed into the goalmouth to provide a 10th-minute lead, an own goal from Soldan’s aerial fight off a Jonas Packiam free kick doubled the advantage in the 23rd minute, and a defensive effort led by Packiam and Jordan Balbuena held strong after Ricardo Diaz-Rea’s spectacular 74th-minute finish rewarded the visiting Cardinals’ second-half dominance.

It leaves Pacifica Christian (15-2-1), which captured its second successive league title and claimed its first postseason wins since 2019, a victory Saturday at top-seeded San Jacinto Leadership Academy (14-5-3) from playing for a CIF championship. It’s a little mind-boggling.

“We came from nothing,” said fourth-year starter Aiden Lynch, the only senior in the Tritons’ starting lineup. “We had to pull kids out of classes [to fill a roster], and it was absolutely horrible. My freshman year, we couldn’t play the ball at all, and now we have such an amazing team, and it’s just so cool to come out here and be able to play the ball around and have a fun time.

“This is something that I’ve wanted for four years.”

It’s the work of Johnny Marmelstein, who took charge in 2022, having been appointed the school’s first dean of students after winning six Southern Section and one Southern California regional title over more than three decades with Palos Verdes Peninsula Chadwick’s boys’ and St. Margaret’s girls’ teams. This is new to Pacifica Christian, not to Marmelstein. He’s won nine semifinals.

“I think they’re tired of hearing that I’ve been through this,” he said. “They don’t want to hear it, and I agree with them. Yeah, I have a lot of experience, and they listen, and it helps, but this is about them and what they’ve accomplished.”

The Tritons were in charge the first 25 minutes or so, repeatedly winning balls through a dynamic midfield led by Lynch and Jacob Coleman and spreading Bishop Diego’s defense across the 75-yard width of Vanguard’s field. It led to one great chance — Soldan feeding Colten Smith inside — before they nearly fell behind.

Batley had to scramble to knock down a River Castellanos blast a minute later, then reached to knock away Eduardo Peña’s close-range rebound headed for the far post.

“He’s kind of a magician,” Marmelstein said. “Kasper is the kind of guy that keeps you in games.”

Said Lynch: “When keepers can make that type of save, you can go anywhere.”

Attwater struck two minutes later, from Soldan on the right off Coleman’s ball behind the Cardinals’ back line, and it was 2-0 after Soldan battled goalkeeper Bruno Rakowski to Packiam’s serve from midfield, and defender Diego Cortez rose to nod the ball into his own net.

Bishop Diego (8-6-3) wrested command late in the half after bulking its midfield group and luring the Tritons away from their direct approach, dictated the pace throughout the second half, and halved its deficit as Diaz-Rea beat three defenders and deposited a left-footed shot inside the lower-left corner following a 60-yard run.

The Cardinals, despite constant pressure, didn’t get another sniff.

“We made it a little uncomfortable for ourselves, made the game more difficult than we needed to,” Marmelstein said. “But we played hard and battled well, and the guys showed real toughness.”

Also in the CIF Southern Section boys’ soccer playoffs:

Newport Harbor 2, Santa Monica Crossroads 0: Daniel Rico and Ali Omar netted the goals for the visiting Sailors on Tuesday in the qarterfinals of the Division 2 bracket.

Newport Harbor (15-3-2) will be home Saturday against top-seeded Downey (15-4-6).