Cambridge wins shootout
Knights, Griffins battle to 3-3 tie
The undefeated Cambridge varsity boys soccer team came from behind to tie previously winless International team in a hard-fought match Thursday on International's field.
Cambridge then won the postgame shootout 5-3, which gives the Knights an extra point in the league standings, though the game goes into the record books as a tie.
The Griffins scored first when champion sprinter Jorge Harriague put on a burst of speed to break loose up the center of the field and put the ball into the net for a 1-0 International lead.
Junior Sanchez, who scored all three of Cambridge's goals, evened the score at 1-1 when he connected on a free kick from just outside the penalty box. The shot was slightly deflected by the Griffins "wall," and Griffin goalie Mauricio Nostas got a hand on it -- but that wasn't enough to keep it out of the goal.
There were plenty of other near misses to keep the small crowd on its toes. At the start of the game Griffin Juan Javier Estenssoro had whacked a free kick off the crossbar, and later Knight Christopher Cocianni whanged a rebound off the inside of the post. Knight Martin Pacor beat the Griffin goalie to the ball and got off a shot, but another Griffin defender had been able to get back in time to keep the ball from going into the goal.
The two teams traded penalty kicks at the beginning of the second half to move the score to 2-2. First Sanchez was knocked down in the International penalty area, and made good on his penalty shot.
Then more or less the same thng happened to Estenssoro at the other end, and he also made good on his opportunity.
It stayed that way until Harriague streaked in to pick up a ball that had been mis-exchanged in front of the Cambridge goal, and scored his second goal of the day.
Near the end of the game Sanchez found himself with the ball in front of the Griffin goal, and evened the count at 3-3. The third Sanchez goal had to be something of a jolt to the Griffins, who had been dominating play in the second half, keeping the ball in the Cambridge end for much of the time.
It was nearly dark when the teams began the shootout. Cambridge made all five of its shots. The shootout was decided when Knight goalie knocked down the shot by International's third shooter, then was able to scamble and gather it in before it could roll over the goal line. No other shot by either team missed.
Cooperative wins shootout
Eagles, Jaguars battle to 1-1 tie
Jose Manuel Vasquez scored with only a few minutes left in the game to enable the Cooperative boys varsity soccer team to garner a 1-1 tie with Christian Learning on their home field Thursday.
The Eagles had led since midway through the first half when Alex Apodaca had scored a go-ahead goal.
In the meantime there had been plenty of business for both goalies in the action-packed game. Alejandro Garcia of the Eagles probably did a lot toward winning the goalie slot on the league all-star game as he saved shot after shot. At the other end of the field Jaguar goalie Alfonso Roca, making his first start in that position, was also a standout.
Cooperative pressed hard toward the end of the game, and hit the goal posts twice before Vasquez made his goal.
The shootout was similarly competitive. After the normal complement of five shots the two teams were tied at 4-4. They then went an extra round -- a sixth shot -- which Cooperative made while Christian Learning did not. This gave Cooperative the extra point in the standings awarded to the shootout winner. The bonus point is to reduce the possibility of a tie in the standings.
