Boys’ Soccer: Sea Kings turned away
Two great chances came for the Corona del Mar High boys’ soccer team in the first half. Each time the Sea Kings were denied.
One huge opportunity arrived again in the second half, but CdM whiffed again. Three strikes and the Sea Kings were out, eliminated after top-seeded Godinez won the CIF Southern Section Division 2 quarterfinal match, 2-0, at Santa Ana Valley on Saturday night.
That last chance came in the form of 11 v. 10 after Godinez senior Jose Requena was assessed a red card and the Grizzlies were a man down for the final 20 minutes.
Godinez (22-1) completed a strong second half, which saw the Grizzlies make the proper adjustments from the first half, when CdM (15-4-5) responded with great aggression after Godinez star Bryan Ibarra scored for a 1-0 lead 15 minutes in. It was Ibarra’s team-leading 29th goal of the season.
“After [Ibarra’s goal] I actually thought we got some confidence,” CdM Coach George Larsen said. “We realized we could play right at them. We had some good moments.”
CdM used its midfield to pressure the Grizzlies in the first half and came up with its first grand scoring chance 10 minutes after Ibarra’s goal. That’s when Niko Urban was fouled in the 18-yard box to set up a penalty kick.
CdM senior standout Will O’Connor, who had dealt with two tough injuries this season, took the penalty kick. Godinez senior goalkeeper Alex Penaloza dived to his left to swat the ball away. Andrea Pregoni then kicked the rebound over the net, as the CdM fans sighed loudly.
Just five minutes later, CdM kept coming at the Grizzlies and this time Kyle Mabwa was fouled to set up a free kick just outside the box. Jon Wirta’s free kick ricocheted off the cross bar. The Sea Kings were denied their equalizer and it was if the Grizzlies wiped their brow in relief to be up 1-0 at halftime.
“We were getting beat in the middle in the first half,” Godinez Coach Ruben Fernandez said. “We were able to make a few adjustments.”
Fernandez said his players were sluggish in the first half, perhaps because their travels from Thursday took a great toll on them. Godinez played at San Luis Obispo on Thursday because the home team didn’t think their field was ready on Wednesday from rain on Tuesday.
The Grizzlies spent up to 10 hours total traveling on a bus on Thursday and didn’t arrive back to Santa Ana until late at night, Fernandez said, after winning the second-round game, 1-0.
“We’re excited to win but we are not letting it get to our heads,” Ibarra said of beating CdM. “That wasn’t our best game. We can play better. We can touch the ball better. We can score more. So we are excited for our next game. We’re going to come out harder.”
Ibarra said it was “natural,” that Penaloza came up with the big save on O’Connor’s PK.
Penaloza said he knew where the ball was going.
“I have my technique,” Penaloza said. “With the [right-footed kickers] I dive to my left. I knew it was going to go there. I knew it, since last year we went to PKs twice in the state playoffs, quarterfinals and semifinals. I blocked three out of six PKs in a game last year.”
O’Connor wasn’t totally devastated after being turned away on his PK. He believed the Sea Kings played a strong game and showed many times they were on the same level with the Grizzlies.
It seemed CdM was on the verge of being a special team, after the Sea Kings were seemingly peaking at the right time. O’Connor had returned for the playoffs after missing the final six Pacific Coast League games with a broken right wrist.
CdM won the Pacific Coast League. The Sea Kings were unbeaten in their previous 12 matches, 10-0-2, heading into their matchup with Godinez, the Orange Coast League champion.
“I feel like we had a lot of potential,” O’Connor said. “If we put away those chances, it could be a different game. We had all the pieces. Finally all the pieces came together, right when they needed to but we just couldn’t get it done today. They are a great team. They are physical, fast and quick and big. Good team, but I feel we played well too.”
In addition to the adjustments made in the second half, Godinez also scored a beautiful goal which proved to give it an insurmountable lead, about 15 minutes into the second half.
Rigoberto Lizardi delivered the assist from wide, near his sideline, the ball floated near the CdM net and Roberto Azarte headed it in.
“It was huge,” Fernandez said of the goal. “The game changed there. It made it a much harder battle for them to fight.”
Still, after the red card, CdM had another opportunity, but couldn’t get a ball in. It was the Grizzlies’ 12th shutout of the season. Godinez will play against Oxnard Hueneme in the semifinals.
“Playing the last 20 minutes with 10 guys I thought my guys did a phenomenal job defensively,” Fernandez said. “I don’t recall them having any clear chances. That’s a tribute to the 10 guys who played.”
Twitter: @SteveVirgen
