Coach Josue Salgado’s Christopher boys soccer team concluded a superb season in the Central Coast Section Division III finals, but after 100 minutes of scoreless action on Feb. 28, CHS fell in a penalty shootout to No. 3 seeded Del Mar.
The No. 5 Cougars upset No. 4 Gonzales 4-1 and top-seeded Menlo 2-0 in two earlier playoff games.
In the penalty kick shootout, the decision went to Del Mar, as all five kickers nailed their shots and Christopher had one shot saved by the Dons’ goalie.
It was a hard way to fall, after an excellent year. Christopher won the Blossom Valley Athletic League, Santa Teresa South Division title with a 7-0-3 record. CHS, 14-2-5 overall, did not lose a match since Dec. 19.
On a hot afternoon, CHS keeper Alan Sanchez was stellar with many big saves. The defense, led by David Romero, Jose Aguayo and Kevin Bustamante, fought off many Dons attacks.
The midfield, with Ricardo Espinosa, Luca Warren, Kingston Solomon, Daniel Prado and Guillermo Valdez, fought a higher-seeded opponent for the third straight playoff game. As always, Raul Ramos and Avery Montejano produced great scoring threats.
“It is a tough loss,” coach Salgado said. “The shootout is a flip of a coin. Their keeper guessed right once. In hindsight, it seems to overshadow a lot of great things. If we take a step back, we were undefeated league champs and it was a great season.”
