Approximately one-third of the way into the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League season, the varsity girls’ soccer teams at Scotts Valley and San Lorenzo Valley High schools appear to be headed in wildly different directions.
The Falcons (4-0-1 SCCAL, 6-2-3 overall) have overcome a rough preseason and find themselves in the thick of the hunt in a very competitive league, while their Cougar counterparts (0-5 SCCAL, 0-9-1 overall) are keeping their heads up in the midst of a down year.
Tuesday afternoon found both teams in action against SCCAL rivals.
Scotts Valley vs. Santa Cruz
The undefeated Falcons played the Santa Cruz High Cardinals to a standstill at home, finishing play with a 1-1 tie.
“It was a seesaw battle, one team wasn’t dominant,” said Head Coach Art Munoz. “We were both undefeated and we hadn’t played each other.”
Strong defense on both sides limited the scoring to a goal apiece, with the Falcons’ strike coming as a swift rebuttal to the Cardinals’ 25-yard shot when junior Desi Rakela sent a cross pass to her teammate Allie Carl, also a junior, who got it past the Santa Cruz goalie.
That was it for the scoring, as the defense hardened for both teams — particularly in the goaltending, Munoz said.
“Both defenses were heavily in play and they both did really well,” Munoz said.
Despite the Falcons’ strong record, he said, his young team — which features only two seniors — is not taking anything for granted.
“It’s not going to be an easy season for us,” Munoz said. “The league is really competitive — everybody’s pretty comparable to each other.”
Coming up next for the Falcon girls, they will take on the SCCAL-leading Aptos High Mariners (4-0 SCCAL, 9-0-1 overall) next Tuesday in Aptos. When they do, Munoz said, it will be without the Falcons’ leading scorer.
Brittany Cartee, whose 11 goals lead the team, was red-carded at the Santa Cruz game and will not be eligible to play until the following match.
San Lorenzo Valley vs. Harbor
In search of their first victory of the season, the Cougar girls took on Harbor High at Depot Park in Santa Cruz. It was not to be, however, as the Pirates handed SLV its fifth consecutive loss in SCCAL play.
“It’s been a tough season for us,” said Head Coach Enrique Reyes. “We’re still optimistic about the future and we’re still playing hard.”
Against Harbor, freshman Jenna Francis scored the Cougars’ lone goal.
The young Cougar squad, which is composed largely of freshmen, sophomores, and juniors, has been wracked by injuries this season, Reyes said, as well as players still learning the ropes.
Despite their record, he said, that the girls are keeping their heads up with an eye toward improvement.
“They’re still in there, they’re still playing,” Reyes said. “It says a whole lot about their characters.”
He cited bright spots for the team in the examples of sophomore co-captain Blaze Brumbaugh, calling her “a good asset for us on defense,” and senior co-captain Maia Graff, who rejoined the team after not playing since her frosh season.
Up next, the Cougar girls will take on the St. Francis Sharks (0-3 SCCAL, 1-6 overall) on Thursday, Jan. 22 at home in Felton.
