Flintridge Prep boys’ soccer blanks San Marino

GLENDALE — No matter the weather or surface conditions of the field, it didn’t take too long for the members of the Flintridge Prep boys’ soccer team to adjust.

Flintridge Prep found itself in the unusual situation of playing in the rain Thursday afternoon during part of its nonleague home match against San Marino at the Glendale Sports Complex.

It hardly affected the Rebels, who got goals from five players to post a 5-0 victory.

Flintridge Prep (5-2) recorded its fifth shutout of the season, all victories.

“It rained and the field was a little sloppy, but we continue to go out there and get the good results,” said Flintridge Prep Coach AJ Yates, whose team qualified for the playoffs last season. “Our only two losses have come against South Pasadena and Marshall Fundamental and those teams should go deep in the playoffs.

“I like the way we are playing. We have got a speed advantage over most teams. When we attack, we can do a lot of different things and be dangerous.”

With a steady rain falling throughout most of the first half, the Rebels continued to pressure the Titans (2-4-1).

Flintridge Prep goalkeeper Hamilton Evans made a tough save on a shot that skipped on the wet surface by JP Shofi in the third minute. The Rebels responded nicely when Ari Baranian scored in the fifth minute to give the Rebels a 1-0 advantage.

“We started out strong by getting that first goal,” said Baranian, a junior midfielder/forward. “We always try to use that to our advantage.

“We made some adjustments during the warmups, especially seeing how the ball skipped.”

The Rebels continued to spend a significant amount of time in San Marino’s territory throughout the first half. Their perseverance paid dividends in a hurry, as the Rebels scored two goals about a minute apart to extend the lead to 3-0.

Daniel Enzminger made it 2-0 in the 22nd minute before junior midfielder Riley Jones scored to make it 3-0.

“When you can get two quick goals like that, the confidence level just goes up,” said Yates, whose team blanked Burbank, Alhambra, Kilpatrick and Sierra Canyon earlier in the season “It settled the guys down from that point on.”

Hamilton, who finished with seven saves, said the Rebels continue to thrive on both ends of the field.

“We can do different things and we seem to be getting more confident playing with each other,” said Evans, a sophomore, who preserved the shutout when he turned aside a penalty shot by Akbar Mahmood in the 77th minute. “I make that save early in the game and then [us scoring] that goal turned out to be huge.”

Flintridge Prep added a pair of second-half goals to close out the scoring.

Senior forward Cole Rademacher made it 4-0 in the 62nd minute, 12 minutes after he sent a penalty shot over the crossbar. Bryce Delgado, a senior midfielder, converted on a penalty kick in the 68th minute for the Rebels.

Flintridge Prep will next compete against Calvary Murrieta in the Ontario Christian High Tournament at 7:30 a.m. Thursday.