Tuesday’s San Diego Section Division II girls semifinal-round playoff game started off well for Mesa League co-champion Bonita Vista as junior scoring leader Hannah Burns scored off a 25-yard run down the sideline with a blistering, bending shot to the upper far corner of the Westview net.
The goal, which came in the 11th minute, seemed to be the spark the top-seeded Barons needed to advance to Saturday’s championship game. Bonita Vista had a chance to double its lead just four minutes later when the hosts were awarded a penalty kick due to an infraction by Westview junior goalkeeper Alexandra Lum.
BV junior Jada Gibson teed up the spot kick but Lum drove to her right to make a lunging save to keep the fifth-seeded Wolverines within striking distance.
And that’s just what happened as the visitors reeled off three unanswered goals in a 23-minute span to take a deflating 3-1 lead.
Sophomore Elly Van Den Einde scored back-to-back goals in the 35th and 38th minutes and sister Anya, also a sophomore, scored on a sliding shot 18 minutes into the second half to provide the visitors with a two-goal cushion.
The first Westview goal came on a long shot that somehow found the upper top corner of the Baron net while the 2-1 go-ahead marker came off a corner kick that floated over the Bonita Vista goalkeeper to a waiting Lady Wolverine.
The Barons (13-2) battled back to within 3-2 on the scoreboard when Vanessa Ramirez scored with 16 minutes to play in regulation off an assist from teammate Miryah Villalopando. However, they could not inch any closer.
“We lost our way,” BVHS head coach Kiko Medina recounted. “We got away a little from the style we are used to playing and that caused a lot of confusion. We made some changes at halftime. They were out-playing us in midfield. We just couldn’t connect. I hoped we could have played more patient.”
“The game changed when we saved the PK,” Westview coach Peter Stogsdill said. “Our goalie caused the PK and she saved it, and that seemed to wake us up.”
Instead, the Wolverines (13-3-2) will play second-seeded Valhalla (10-2-4) in the division final, which is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. at Eastlake High School.
Valhalla advanced after winning a penalty kicks-from-the-mark tiebreaker against sixth-seeded Mission Hills (13-0-3) in Tuesday’s other semifinal match.
Senior goalkeeper MacKenzie Samuel emerged on top in the 4-2 KFM tiebreaker as the Norsemen received spot kick tallies from seniors Kate Baranski, Ysabella Gonzalez and Jenna Smith and sophomore Lillianna Meram.
Bonita Vista had advanced to Tuesday’s semifinals following last Friday’s 4-1 win over ninth-seeded Francis Parker (6-4-4).
The Barons took a 3-0 lead into halftime on the strength of two goals from Burns and another from Ramirez.
“I felt we came out very strong and were able to put away our early chances before they had a chance to settle in,” the BVHS head coach said. “Unfortunately, we took our foot off the gas a bit, but we were able to get one more in the second half from Vanessa again.
“Those two (Burns and Ramirez) gave us a lot going forward and Vanessa also added in an assist. We gave up the goal very late off a deflection.
“It was nice to get that first win in as the girls seemed to play with a bit of nerves believe it or not.”
Open Division
Fourth-seeded Torrey Pines (11-3-5) upset top-seeded Cathedral Catholic (11-2-4) by a 1-0 score in Tuesday’s semifinals to advance to Friday’s championship game at Mission Bay High School. However, second-seeded Eastlake was unable to join the Falcons in the final after being upset themselves in a 1-0 upset loss to third-seeded La Costa Canyon on Tuesday.
LCC (12-2-4) scored the game’s only goal in the second half as the defenses for both teams remained tight.
The Mesa League co-champions ended an otherwise standout season with a final 13-2-1 record.
Southwest girls soccer team is chasing history once again
Southwest High School’s girls soccer team entered its name in the San Diego Section record book when it defeated Sage Creek, 1-0, to win the 2016 Division IV championship game.
The Lady Raiders will be looking to make history again after becoming the Metro Conference’s lone girls soccer team to advance to this weekend’s championships.
Top-seeded Southwest (10-5-1) shut out fourth-seeded Imperial, 2-0, in Tuesday’s Division IV semifinals to meet third-seeded Classical Academy (21-3) Saturday at 11 a.m. at Eastlake High School.
“It was a great accomplishment,” Southwest coach Angel Briseno said. “The girls played their hearts out. It’s been a crazy season, but the girls have been so positive. They believed in each other. They set a goal to make it to the CIF finals and have not backed down.”
Gigi Acosta and Katelyne Lara scored goals in Tuesday’s semifinal win while freshman goalkeeper Karen Jones recorded the shutout victory.
Classical Academy should present a formidable foe after blanking 10th-seeded Hoover, 3-0, on Tuesday. Hoover had eliminated second-seeded San Ysidro (11-3-2) by a 1-0 score in last Friday’s quarterfinals.
South Bay League champion Southwest advanced from the quarterfinals with a 2-0 win over eighth-seeded Clairemont (11-4-1) as Lara scored both goals.
SAN DIEGO SECTION GIRLS SOCCER FINALS
Open Division
Friday, May 28, at Mission Bay High School
(2) Torrey Pines vs. (3) La Costa Canyon, 7:30 p.m.
Division I
Saturday, May 29, at Mission Bay High School
(1) Del Norte vs. (10) Steele Canyon, 4:30 p.m.
Division II
Saturday, May 29, at Eastlake High School
(2) Valhalla vs. (5) Westview, 7:30 p.m.
Division III
Saturday, May 29, at Mission Bay High School
(4) La Jolla vs. (10) Sage Creek, 1:30 p.m.
Division IV
Saturday, May 29, at Eastlake High School
(1) Southwest vs. (2) Classical Academy, 11 a.m.
Division V
Friday, May 28, at Eastlake High School
(1) Holtville vs. (7) Orange Glen, 4:30 p.m.
