Soccer squad falls in final two minutes of third game to finish
with 1-2 tourney record
SANTA CRUZ – After rebounding from an opening loss with a commanding victory, the De Anza Flash were nipped in the final two minutes of their third game in Santa Cruz’s Soccer Class at UC-Santa Cruz to come away with one win and two losses.
The Flash opened Saturday against Pleasanton Rage’s Fusion in the early game – coming out on the losing end of a 3-0 final decision.
The Flash kept the pressure on in the first half with teammates Alison Wan, Kelly Logan, Sarah Whitling and Kendra Sato working well together. Cayla Derry fought hard to push the ball through Pleasanton’s back line, but could not find the back of the net.
The Fusion managed only one shot in the first half – but it counted for a goal to give them a 1-0 lead and then scored two more in the second.
Up next, the Flash came out firing against Scott’s Valley Speed – netting a team-high eight goals. The Flash spread the ball around as Brittany Barnes, Derry, Kelly Logan, Trish Dunwoodie and Nicole Hovey each scored a goal. In addition, teammate Alison Wan converted a penalty kick with a direct pass to the side net. Kendra Sato scored twice for the Flash.
On Sunday, the Flash needed only a tie with the Marin Hotshots to advance to the next round. The action went back and forth as neither team gained much of an advantage. The Hotshots broke the scorless tie early in the second half for a 1-0 edge. Five minutes later, Flash’s Nicole Hovey answered with a strike to tie the score up.
Then it got interesting.
Twice Hotshot attackers broke through alone onto the Flash’s goal and twice Ani-mel Regan came up big– snuffing the forwards at the edge of her penalty box. But with less than two minutes left, a slippery ball was dropped in front of the Flash goal. Marin’s alert forward pushed it home to steal the win.
Next weekend, the Flash will compete in CYSA’s District Cup in Salinas. League play ends November 15.
