Humberto Pineda was all over the field, setting up
teammates.
Gilroy never trailed, and yet couldn’t get a goal that would
have put away Salinas. So the Mustangs settled for a 2-2 Tri-County
Athletic League tie Friday with the Cowboys at Garcia-Elder
Complex.
Gilroy – Humberto Pineda was all over the field, setting up teammates.
Gilroy never trailed, and yet couldn’t get a goal that would have put away Salinas. So the Mustangs settled for a 2-2 Tri-County Athletic League tie Friday with the Cowboys at Garcia-Elder Complex.
“I’m not too happy with the tie,” said Pineda, who had a goal and assist. “We could have won. They were celebrating like they won. We had opportunities to score. We had lot of shots. We just couldn’t put them in.”
Pineda scored with 27:08 remaining in the first half, taking a deft pass from Jose “Tapon” Velasquez and putting a left-footed shot past the diving keeper.
Salinas tied the game two minutes, 35 seconds later. Jose Montenegro found sophomore Isaiah Abonce in the middle of the field. Abonce scored from 15 yards out.
Pineda and Ricky Enriquez showed a shape of things to come in the first minute of the second half. Pineda juked a defender and found Enriquez on a crossing pass. Enriquez got his head on the ball but the goalie got it just before it crossed the plane. It was one of at least three golden opportunities missed by the Mustangs (7-2-4 overall, 2-0-3 in TCAL).
The two were at it again in the 17th minute. Pineda’s pass from the left side went to Enriquez, whose diving header to the left post beat the keeper.
Gilroy spent the next 19 minutes repelling attacks by the Cowboys (6-2-6, 2-1-2). With four minutes left, a free kick from 20 yards out found the net.
“We showed we could score but we didn’t show we could defend,” GHS co-coach Armando Padilla said. “Pineda took over the game and kept us in the game. We played well enough to win but got the tie.”
The Mustangs enjoyed a 14-3 advantage in shots on goal. Salinas’ only missed shot came in the first minute of the game on a header that just went over the top of the net. Other than that, Gilroy was on the attack and yet not enough on target.
First place will be at stake Monday when the Mustangs are at Alisal for a 6pm contest. The Trojans, who edged San Benito 2-1, are currently in first place at 3-0-2 in the TCAL.
