The San Diego County Cup/Quin Murphy Tournament wrapped up its second edition with championship finals last weekend at Otay Ranch and Hilltop high schools.
Four of the five divisions featured a South County champion in the 30-team tournament.
In varsity finals played amid frigid conditions at Hilltop High School, the host Lancers defeated neighborhood rival Castle Park, 2-1, on a goal in the final two minutes of play to capture the boys varsity Silver Division title while Montgomery pulled off a stunning win over longtime regional power Bonita Vista in the kicks-from-the-mark tiebreaker to claim the girls varsity trophy.
In the final match of the triple-header, Calexico edged Otay Ranch, 1-0, to win the boys varsity Gold Division championship.
In junior varsity finals played at Otay Ranch High School, the host Mustangs defeated Sweetwater, 2-0, to win the JV1 division while Eastlake edged Scripps Ranch in a KFM tiebreaker to win the JV2 division.
Tournament director and Hilltop varsity boys coach John Salts noted the tournament was down from 46 teams in its inaugural season due to the late cancellation of the girls junior varsity and novice brackets.
Still, there was plenty of exciting matches to watch.
Salts lauded the participation of the Quin Murphy Foundation in this year’s tournament.
He noted that the foundation has supplied $50,000 in scholarship money to high school senior students in the area over the past nine years.
Murphy, the tournament’s namesake, was a student at Hilltop High School.
Boys Varsity Silver Division
Pablo Farias supplied both goals in Hilltop’s win over Castle Park. The first goal came six minutes into the match to boost the host Lancers to a 1-0 lead. The second goal came in the waning stages of the match and proved to be the game-winning goal.
The dramatic win extended Hilltop’s unbeaten streak to 13 games (12 wins, one tie) and elevated the Lancers’ season record to an impressive 15-3-1.
“We haven’t had a start like this since the two years we went to the CIF finals (in 2011 and 2012),” Salts explained. “I think maturity and team chemistry are our strong points.
The Lancer roster is heavy with juniors and seniors — returners from last season’s team. “They have one more year of experience together,” the HHS coach said.
Castle Park tied the match, 1-1, on a goal by Juan Garduno just prior to halftime.
The Trojans carried the run of play throughout the second half until Farias struck for the go-ahead tally.
The game-winning play started with an indirect free kick by Gael Ruiz. The ball began dipping near the far post where Farias drove it into the back twine on a diving header.
It was a sensational strike to cap a well-played and intense match.
Hilltop goalkeeper Erik Acosta was credited with four saves to record the shutout victory. The Lancers have recorded five shutout wins so far this season and limited opponents to one goal or less in 16 matches.
The tournament title was the second in the span of a week after Hilltop edged Ramona, 2-1, to win the Grossmont Holiday Tournament on Dec. 22. Farias and Ivan Jimenez each scored goals for the Lancers.
Hilltop finished 3-0-1 in to win this year’s County Cup title.
Getting their kicks
Twenty or 30 years ago, perhaps even more recently, few would have picked Montgomery to defeat a team representing Bonita Vista High School in girls soccer. But the dynamics have clearly changed in an era where girls sports have been elevated in importance throughout the Sweetwater Union High School District.
The implementation of a novice division for girls soccer several years ago, as well as the introduction of middle school sports, have clearly leveled the playing field for many teams throughout the district.
It’s clearly a new era for the sport locally.
Montgomery finished 19-1-6 two seasons ago as South Bay League champions en route to a runner-up finish in the San Diego Section Division IV playoffs.
The Aztecs improved to 8-4 this season after winning last weekend’s tournament championship.
Last Saturday’s win made amends for a 2-0 loss to Bonita Vista in pool play on Dec. 26, the opening day of the tournament.
“We lost to them in pool play but came back through hard work and passion,” Montgomery coach Daniel Hernandez explained. “We have five seniors on our roster of 26 players, so we’re young. Most of our team is coming back next year. We have nine freshmen on the team. It was a team win.”
Montgomery took a 1-0 lead on a looping 35-yard direct free kick taken by Verenice Ochoa midway through the first half.
The play between the teams was fairly even, though the Barons may have owned a slight edge late in the match.
Bonita Vista leveled the score on a goal by Andrea Garcia early in the second half.
The score remained deadlocked 1-1 through two scoreless overtime periods, thus necessitating the KFM tiebreaker.
Both teams made their first shots while both goalkeepers stopped shots in the second round to keep the score tied 1-1.
Bonita Vista’s third shooter missed while Montgomery’s third shooter made her shot to put the Aztecs ahead 2-1. However, a goal by Bonita Vista’s Ale Jaramillo and a miss by Montgomery tied the shootout round at 2-2 through four rounds.
Bonita Vista hit the post to open the fifth round while Ochoa slammed her shot into the open side of the net to give the Aztecs a 3-2 edge in the KFM tiebreaker.
Jubilant players quickly engulfed Ochoa, both arms raised in triumph to mark her game-winning deed.
It was a surreal scene for anyone who has followed girls soccer in South County over the past three decades.
Freshman goalkeeper Mylani Quinata stopped two of the four shots taken against her in the KFM tiebreaker (excluding the miss wide in the fifth round). She also played well during regulation and overtime.
“Our goalie made some great saves,” Hernandez underscored.
The best could be in the making.
The Aztecs have kicked off Mesa League play 2-0 with impressive victories against Otay Ranch (3-1 on Dec. 18) and Mar Vista (5-1 on Dec. 20). Montgomery hosts Bonita Vista in a prime time Mesa League match on Jan. 15. The teams conclude regular season play Feb. 7 at BVHS.
“We want to win the banner,” Hernandez said. “We’ll start with league.”
The challenge has been issued.
