La Quinta soccer forfeit ignites debate

The decision to force La Quinta to forfeit its quarterfinal girls’ soccer victory over St. Margaret’s because a player who had been ejected in the previous game watched from outside a fence has left La Quinta supporters stunned and disappointed.

La Quinta apparently received approval from an official who believed it was OK for the player, Brielle Leon, to be present outside the stadium. She had received a red card in her previous game and under CIF rules, must sit out the next game and can’t be in attendance. According to the Desert Sun, she watched the match near the scoreboard on public property. The Southern Section determined that was a violation of the rule, requiring the team to forfeit the victory.

The fact she had no role in La Quinta’s overtime victory over St. Margaret’s has angered some supporters who question why St. Margaret’s filed the protest.

Athletic Director Dan Armstrong told the Desert Sun: “You can quote me on this: I don’t know how anybody can go on and, if it happens, think they’re going to be CIF champs when they got beat. They didn’t win it on the field. And Brielle didn’t play. We beat them with arguably our best player (out), and to think that you can get some kind of satisfaction out of that, I don’t know how people can do that.

“That is completely the opposite of the spirit of sport and victory with honor, which is what CIF preaches. Unfortunately, the only people who suffer are the girls who won.”

La Quinta, however, would have been responsible for self-reporting the violation once it became known, so to blame St. Margaret’s is not appropriate either.

St. Margaret’s is scheduled to host San Marino in a Division 5 semifinal game on Tuesday.

Eric.sondheimer@latimes.com