The Santa Barbara Soccer Club scored three unanswered goals and held on to beat Willamette, Oregon, 3-2, on Saturday to reach the championship game of the Boys Under-14 Division at the United States Youth Soccer Far West Regionals in Phoenix, Ariz.
The SBSC U-14 White will play Juventus Heat of Redwood City in Sunday’s championship match at 7:30 a.m. Juventus Heat defeated Alum Rock PAC Impact of San Jose 3-0 in the other semifinal on Saturday.
Santa Barbara got off to a great start, scoring two goals in the first half against Willamette. Giovanny Acosta opened the scoring off a feed from Carson Vom Steeg. Francisco Arroyo finished an assist from Brandon Sanchez to make it 2-0. Jules Pasco, from Brandon Sanchez, gave SBSC a 3-0 advantage early in the second half.
The Oregon team pushed several players forward and scored a couple of goals late in the second half. They were the first goals allowed by Santa Barbara in the tournament.
Santa Barbara has outscored its opponents 7-2.
“The seven goals have been scored by seven different players … total fútbol, anyone can score,” said SBSC coach Rudy Ybarra. “Most important has been our defensive transition.”
