The San Diego Section girls soccer finals have attracted their fair share of South County teams in recent years.
High Tech High Chula Vista recorded a breakthrough season in 2014 when it captured the Division III championship.
Castle Park won the Division V championship in 2015 while Chula Vista defeated Olympian to claim the Division IV title that same year.
Southwest won the Division IV championship in 2016 while Montgomery finished runner-up in the division in 2017.
Otay Ranch finished runner-up in the Division IV finals in 2017 while Mater Dei Catholic won the Division IV title in 2018.
Otay Ranch made a celebrated return to the championship round by recording a 3-2 win over La Jolla Country Day in last Saturday’s Division III final at Mission Bay High School.
The eighth-seeded Lady Mustangs (15-5-2) and sixth-seeded Lady Torreys (11-8-3) both completed upset runs through the bracket.
Otay Ranch upset top-seeded Monte Vista, 4-0, in the quarterfinals and recorded a 2-0 win over fourth-seeded Coronado in the semifinals while LJCD upset third-seeded El Capitan, 5-4, in overtime in the quarterfinals and second-seeded Mission Vista, 3-0, in the semifinals.
“It’s the first banner ever,” Otay Ranch head coach Wayne Brewton said. “I’m proud to coach this team. The effort, the skills of these girls, I can’t say enough about this team. This is an awesome group of girls.”
Seniors Emma Gaines-Ramos and Erika Briseno were freshmen on Otay Ranch’s 2017 runner-up team.
“I felt a lot more confident this time,” said Gaines-Ramos, who advanced to the US Youth Soccer national championship tournament two years ago as a member of the Rebels Soccer Club. “This year our team was closer together. I thought that if we played with our hearts that we would win.”
“Obviously, it’s a lot better feeling to win the championship,” Briseno said. “It means a lot more because it’s my last year. We all tried our best. We all played with our hearts.”
The Lady Mustangs never trailed in the game. Freshman Pilar Torres gave Otay Ranch a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute following a pass from junior teammate Elizabeth Vargas. Junior Alyssa Rivera doubled the margin to 2-0 with a goal in the 36th minute, assisted by Gaines-Ramos.
LJCD halved the score to 2-1 on a goal less than a minute later by Tara Jessen. It was the first goal conceded by the Otay Ranch defense in four playoff games.
But Otay Ranch promptly regained their two-goal lead by scoring off the second-half kickoff as Torres dribbled through the defense to score on a breakaway.
Gaines-Ramos received credit for the assist.
LJCD scored 15 minutes into the second half to trim the Otay Ranch lead to a single goal but the Lady Mustangs held on to record the school’s first CIF championship in girls soccer.
The two goals gave Torres 10 for the season while Rivera tallied her 11th goal.
Torres and Emma Blancaz each scored a goal in the semifinal win over Coronado.
One for the thumb
Meanwhile, the Mater Dei Catholic boys team is accustomed to winning CIF championships.
Marian Catholic won Division IV section titles in 2002, 2004 and 2005 before transferring to its current east side Chula Vista campus. Mater Dei Catholic continued the tradition by winning the 2009 division championship while finishing runner-up to Coronado in 2013.
The top-seeded Crusaders (18-3-1) defeated second-seeded Francis Parker, 3-2, to capture the Division IV title last Saturday at Hilltop High School. It was the program’s fifth division championship to go with one state championship (in 2009).
The scoring in last Saturday’s championship game was dominated by a player from each team. Junior Oscar Tapia scored all three goals for Mater Dei Catholic while Joey Diamond-Pott scored both goals for Francis Parker.
“I was nervous before the game,” admitted Tapia, playing his first varsity season. “But once I got into the match, I didn’t feel nervous anymore. I was super excited just playing.”
“He had two great practice sessions and I had a feeling he was going to have a good game and we played him,” MDCHS head coach Jorge Zavala said.
Tapia opened scoring in the game in the 22nd minute off a feed from Justin Carreon.
Francis Parker (15-4-2) tied the match, 1-1, in the 31st minute on a penalty kick.
The Lancers had been given new life in the playoffs after initially losing, 5-3, to third-seeded Clairemont in the semifinals but later having the result overturned by forfeit due to the Chieftains using an ineligible player.
Francis Parker appeared to make the most of the opportunity by taking a 2-1 lead early in the second half on Diamond-Pott’s 25th goal of the season.
Francis Parker held its lead with 10 minutes to play before Tapia struck for both the game-tying and game-winning goals.
Tapia tied the match, 2-2, on a breakaway in the 70th minute.
The game-winner came two minutes from time on a pass from Carlos Elias.
Tapia gave credit to his teammates. “They gave me the ball each time,” he said. “I just tried to finish.”
“It’s a team,” Zavala emphasized. “They have a will to win. They picked away. They kept going. We switched to a 4-3-3 and popped in two goals in the second half and took care of business.”
New San Diego Loyal to host Chula Vista Night on March 14
San Diego Loyal SC will make its USL Championship debut Saturday, March 7, at USD’s Torero Stadium when its hosts the Las Vegas Lights. Kickoff is 7 p.m.
Loyal, which was founded by Warren Smith and Landon Donovan as the region’s newest professional soccer team, is seeking to attract loyal fans for support, hence its name.
As part of the club’s novel 18/85 City Night initiative, the Loyal will host Chula Vista Night on March 14 when the club pays tribute to the city, its residents and its soccer fans.
The outreach initiative aspires to showcase each of the county’s incorporated cities (18) and communities (85).
The team wants to foster a better connection between fans across the county’s different regions, according to Warren, who serves as club president and co-owner
“We want to educate, celebrate and engage,” Smith said. “We feel we have a bigger responsibility to the region than just having fun.”
The team plans to showcase the people, businesses, schools, youth organizations, veterans, first responders and leaders of the county’s second-largest city as part of Chula Vista Night, along with a look at the city’s history and future that includes many groundbreaking initiatives.
Exclusive on-field experiences will feature Chula Vista residents, including program ceremonies, youth soccer games at halftime, a person of the match and national anthem performances.
Donovan needs no introduction as one of the most decorated U.S. national team members over his 20-year playing career, including 10 years with the L.A. Galaxy of Major League Soccer. He is serving as manager/coach of the Loyal and is excited about the potential of the new club.
“Watching these 26 young men succeed is better than any feeling I’ve had,” Donovan said. “I’m excited about what this team can bring to San Diego.”
The Loyal looks to put an exciting product on the field after defeating Panama’s Costa del Este (1-0) and Reno 1868 (4-2) in a pair of recent preseason exhibition matches. The game against the Panama team attracted 3,000 fans to Torero Stadium and was very reminiscent of the atmosphere created by the San Diego Spirit in the Women’s United Soccer Association that regularly filled up the stadium.
Besides preparing on the pitch for its season opener, the new club has also been working behind the scenes to tap community support.
They look to get it if recent appearances in Chula Vista are any indicator.
The team has been practicing at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center and Donovan has been undying in his praise for the sprawling facility overlooking the Lower Otay Reservoir.
The Loyal also held a training session Feb. 24 at Hilltop High School during which about 200 students were able to watch, meet players and get autographs.
Hilltop soccer player Hector Lua got several autographs.
“I think I got the coach,” he said while pointing to his signed photo card.
The training appearance was organized through Leo Hsu, a physical education resource teacher and health resource teacher within the Sweetwater Union High School District.
“I liked it,” said Lua, a sophomore, whose Lancers advanced as far as the San Diego Section Division III semifinal playoffs. “Everyone’s touches were great. There were no bad touches. The overall intensity was good. I want to see them play. They seem interesting.”
Chula Vista Mayor Mary Casillas Salas was on hand to take in the practice and address the media at the Hilltop event.
Hilltop girls soccer coach Rene Ortiz, a physical education teacher on campus, also took in the proceedings. He harkened the event back to his youth when the legendary Pele and the New York Cosmos came to San Diego to play the San Diego Jaws in a North American Soccer League exhibition match at Balboa Stadium in March 1976.
The game attracted 18,000 fans, including Ortiz, now 50, as a young boy.
“I remember a big sign on one side of the stadium that simply read ‘Pele,’” Ortiz recalled excitedly.
Ortiz’s soccer career has gone far. He coached Team Mexico to the 2019 World Minifootball Federation World Cup championship in Australia and serves as an assistant coach with the San Diego Sockers.
“For me that was an impact moment in my life as a soccer player,” he said. “I hope that seeing Landon Donovan coming to Hilltop makes a positive impact on some of these guys’ soccer careers.
“I think it’s great to have the team wanting to be accessible to the community. Having Landon Donovan in front of these students will hopefully open doors at the professional level. Hopefully we’ll get an MLS team sooner than later. We’re very excited to see them here at Hilltop.”
The Loyal made an appearance at the Otay Ranch Farmer’s Market the following day.
The Loyal’s playing roster is drawn from the United States, England, Nigeria, Panama, South Africa, Mexico, Montenegro, Jamaica, DR Congo, Cameroon, Sierra Leone and Mauritius.
Jack Metcalf, a Liverpool native, scored the game-winner in the game against Costa del Este.
The team is expecting a large crowd for Saturday’s home opener. The first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive a 2020 inaugural match T-shirt.
For more information on the team, visit its website at SDLoyal.com.
