Looking to avoid its third straight one-and-done playoff run,
the No. 4 seed Gilroy High boys soccer team had plenty of
confidence heading into a Central Coast Section Division I
quarterfinal contest with No. 12 Evergreen Valley on Saturday in
Gilroy.
Jorge Sanchez made no excuses.
“They were just ready to play and we weren’t,” the senior forward said.
Looking to avoid its third straight one-and-done playoff run, the No. 4 seed Gilroy High boys soccer team had plenty of confidence heading into a Central Coast Section Division I quarterfinal contest with No. 12 Evergreen Valley on Saturday in Gilroy.
The Mustangs were a week removed from earning their first Tri-County Athletic League title in four years, seemingly hitting their stride at the right time.
However, GHS inexplicably fell flat against an aggressive Cougars squad, losing a disappointing 2-0 decision to deflate section championship aspirations.
“They wanted it more than us,” Sanchez said. “They pressured us and outplayed us in every aspect of the game.”
Cougars midfielder Emil Kirov had a goal in each half while the Mustangs vaunted forward duo of Sanchez and Jonathan Diaz De Leon, who combined for 33 goals in the regular season, were bottled up and rarely let free to create attractive chances for the Mustangs.
“I think their style of play, which is a long ball, very direct style of play, just totally disrupted our keeping the ball on the ground, possession and letting the ball do the work,” GHS head coach Armando Padilla said. “It was a contrast in styles of play but it ended up being their style the whole game.”
A constant ball pressure limited the movement of Gilroy’s midfield enablers Abraham Arreaga and Kristian Urias, which compounded the problem and the Mustangs searched for solutions.
“All we do is hard press, especially against teams that like to pass it, which forces them to play kick ball and our defense is set up perfectly for that,” Kirov said.
Padilla, though, said his team usually handles that high-ball pressure.
“We just didn’t today,” he said.
The Cougars had already upset the fifth-seeded Watsonville Wildcatz, who took second in Division I a season ago, and carried some of that energy into Saturday’s game against another higher seed.
“They had some momentum from their big win against Watsonville and then coming up against a No. 4 seed it just looked like they were playing with nothing to lose and going in 100 percent and it was tough to match their intensity,” Padilla said. At this point of the season you match up and if it means you step up your game a little bit if that’s what it take. And unfortunately, we couldn’t match up with our opponent today … and just get going and play our game.”
Kirov nestled in a void among the Mustangs’ defensive third turned a through ball from Alex Villalobos into a 1-0 Cougars’ lead 10 minutes into the first half. Kirov scored during a similar situation in the 49th minute, running unmarked down the right sideline where he connected with a cross from Jason Romero for the 2-0 advantage.
Padilla put an extra forward on the front line midway through the second half, though, that adjustment still yielded little offensive push.
“It was frustrations. At times I was getting a little angry because I couldn’t get any balls to me,” Sanchez said. “When Jonathan and I get the ball that’s when things get rolling and we weren’t able to do that at all.”
The Mustangs finish with a 15-4-2 record, including an 11-1 league mark.
This is a great group of guys that work hard and love playing for one another,” Padilla said. “Its sad that it has to end. I felt like we had a better chance. That’s why we play soccer. It’s a fun, competitive game and sometimes teams come out flat and sometimes you come out ready to win. Today was one of those days where it was hard to find our own identity out on the field.”
