It was CIF playoff drama at its best at Peabody Stadium on Friday afternoon.
Unfortunately for the Santa Barbara High girls soccer team, it was visiting Long Beach Poly that pulled off the heavy dramatics.
The Jackrabbits scored in the 78th minute of regulation to tie the game at 1-1 and force overtime. After two scoreless extra periods, Long Beach survived a seven-round shootout to advance into the second round of the Division I playoffs.
“It’s like a morgue in there,” described Dons head coach Brian Lloyd of the postgame locker room.
Karli Graf leaps to challenge Poly kepper Corrin Villasenor.
Santa Barbara looked like it would be the team to move on for most of the game, holding a 1-0 lead since a Karli Graf goal in the 20th minute. Again, in the shootout, Long Beach Poly was on the ropes and needed Alexis Leyba and Taylor-Erin Carter to convert do-or-die penalty kicks in order to give freshman teammate Therese Perales the chance to kick the game-winner.
Santa Barbara's Dena Slaff and Poly's Jazmine Rhodes collide in the first half of Thursday's game.
“We felt like we deserved it. It’s just unlucky,” said Dons senior Briana Lopez, admitting that it would take a while to get over the sting of the loss.
The decision came down to a shootout, with Long Beach’s Celeste Moncure and Santa Barbara’s Scout Frank defending the goal.
The Dons were up first and had star player Briana Lopez up to bat. But Lopez pushed her shot on the ground without much behind it and Moncure was able to fall on it. Brittany Couture, Kristen Jimenez and Adrian Hill converted successive attempts after Lopez to keep the pressure on the Jackrabbits, who confidently knocked in their first three shots. When Gentile Elliot sent Long Beach’s fourth shot over the crossbar, the Dons’ crowd roared with new life.
Kirsten Jurich and Debbie Arreola put away the next two for Santa Barbara, each time forcing Long Beach to convert or lose. Moncure came up with another save on the Dons’ seventh shot and Perales didn’t miss on hers, running back to celebrate with her elated teammates.
“I told them at halftime, good teams find a way to win,” said Jackrabbits head coach Teri Collins.
For Lopez, it was a tough way to end a stellar senior season.
“It meant a lot to her to win and I think she just got a little nervous,” Lloyd said.
Lopez created Graf’s score in the first half when she got behind the defense and went 1-on-1 with Villasenor, who came out to take the ball from Lopez. The two collided without the ball being secured and Graf was following the play in just the right spot to hit it into an open net.
It was another freshman for the Jackrabbits, Nikki Wadley that was responsible for the equalizer, following up on a rebound to beat Frank, who nearly had a shutout in her season debut.
The Dons finish with a 7-4-5 record.
You have the goalies wrong. In the picture it is Corrin Villasenor. The same with the 1v1.
Got it, thanks, they've been doing that all year, right?
Poly outshot SB by a huge margin and generally dominated. The flavor of your reporting is a little inaccurate.
I didn't say they didn't. I pointed out that they had their backs up against the wall twice, which they did.
Where can I see the pictures for this game? Or a video, if you have any connections with the people recording the game let me know please.
Where can I see the pictures for this game? Or a video, if you have any connections with the people recording the game let me know please.