“We gave it a helluva run,” said Nikki Byrne, forcing a smile despite the tears rolling down her cheeks.
A historic season ended for the Laguna Blanca girls soccer team on Tuesday afternoon, as visiting Vasquez defeated the Owls 2-0 in the CIF Division VII semifinals. It was the furthest Laguna has ever gone in the playoffs.
Byrne made a leaping save in the third minute, but the Mustangs scored both of their goals in the ensuing 10 minutes. Laguna (16-4-1) started to regain its composue near the end of the first half and got plenty of good looks, but it wasn’t to be.
The Mustangs improved to 24-0 on the season, having outscored their opponents by a jaw-dropping margin of 123-4.
“I think we just came out very nervous, and besides being nervous we got sidetracked emotionally by the two early goals,” said Owls coach Gregg Luna.
Erin Stone was booked with a yellow card for a hard tackle right after the second goal was scored and the Owls looked flustered, no doubt a bad sign considering how early in the game it was.
They re-focused, however, and had a few solid opportunities just before the break, including a throw-in by McKenzie Scarborough which ended up in front of Stone near the far post. The junior captain made a leaping shot attempt that just missed.
Scarborough sent in a pair of crosses that had good chances of being knocked in before the half to no avail.
The pattern continued to start the second half. Vasquez’s goalie went out to chase a ball in the far corner of the box and Laguna’s Ari Rodriguez just missed getting it through the defense for an easy score.
The Owls began to look progressively fatigued beginning in the 25th minute of the second half, and hope began to fade with their energy.
“Our statistician said that they took seven shots, and they scored twice,” said Luna. “We had some really good chances, but we just couldn’t convert.”
Byrne and standout defender Monica Beltran are the team’s only seniors. Both say that the future is bright considering this year’s team – which started four freshmen – was able to go undefeated in the Condor League for the first time in history and also make the deep playoff run.
“Monica and I talked for a long time before the season about what we wanted to do in our senior year,” said Byrne. “We said we wanted to play well and maybe win league. This loss will always hurt a little bit but it was an amazing season to finish with.”
Beltran, also tearful, had similar thoughts.
“I’m bummed we lost, but I’m so happy my high school soccer career ended with a season like this… The other girls have grown so much and they’re going to go far in the next few years.”
Before the season, Luna had said the team’s goal was to make the playoffs.
That’s all changed now:
“Our objective next year will be to go all the way.”
