GILROY — The Christopher girls soccer team triumphed over crosstown rival Gilroy, 4-1, under the Friday night lights of Garcia-Elder Stadium at Gilroy High School.
The Cougars came out strong with goals from Jamie Boutee, Summer Rodriguez and Zidant Okere in the first half, giving them a dominating 3-0 lead at halftime that they would not relinquish.
One of the more emotional moments of the game came after Summer Rodriguez’s goal in the 28th minute, as she came running to her teammates on the sideline with a wide smile, screaming “I can’t believe I scored a goal! I teared up a little.”
Things weren’t as joyful on the Gilroy sideline.
At halftime, Gilroy assistant coach Mario Gomez focused on the positives instead of dwelling on the negatives.
“There’s plenty of time left in the game,” Gomez told his team. “Just give it 100 percent; that’s what counts.
“I talked to them about the good things they were doing on the field. I was just proud of them going after the ball and wanted them to finish strong.”
The pep talk seemed to spark the Mustangs, as they showed a lot of heart in the second half, in spite of the three-goal deficit.
“We knew we had to keep working hard and that the game wasn’t over yet,” said junior Jackie Gomez, who scored the lone goal for Gilroy on an assist from senior Connie Contreras in the 64th minute, cutting the lead to 3-1. “This is our house, our home, so we knew had to continue fighting for it.”
The crosstown rivalry gave more meaning to the game to some players, while others looked at it as just another game.
“Every game is equal. You have to give it your all every single time you’re on the field no matter who you’re playing,” said Gilroy senior Jackie Andrade. “We tried our hardest, but it just wasn’t enough today.”
Gilroy’s displayed determination in the second half , but it just wasn’t not enough to overcome the Cougars, who looked in sync all game long.
“We played as a unit,” said Christopher sophomore Natalie Filippi, who had an assist in the first half. “The team stayed focused, and we played as if the score was 0-0 all game. We stayed consistent, and it really shows what we’ve been training for.”
Sophomore Vanessa Koontz had an assist in the first half for the Cougars and scored a goal in the 77th minute for the final score of the game.
“It’s a very intense atmosphere playing Gilroy, but we knew we had to rise to the challenge,” said Koontz. “We have to keep our momentum going if we want to make CCS, and that’s definitely what we’re pushing for.”
Christopher coach Robert Beardsley was beaming with pride after the game about how his team played.
“It’s the hardest I’ve seen them play all year,” said Beardsley. “We’ve had a good season, but I think today was the hardest and toughest I’ve seen them play.”
When asked if his team’s extra hard-fought effort had anything to do with facing the crosstown rival, Beardsley didn’t hesitate to respond.
“No doubt. There were a lot of extra feelings here playing the other team in Gilroy,” Beardsley said. “Our team just came and worked hard from the start of the game.”
“This is the best first half we’ve had all season, because we’ve actually been a really good second-half team this season,” added Beardsley. “This is the first time I felt like we really controlled the first half really well and scored when we had our chances.”
Gilroy will look to bounce back from this loss at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday at Alisal, while Christopher (11-3 overall, 3-3 in league) hopes to continue its impressive play at 6:45 p.m. Friday at Pajaro Valley.
The Mustangs and Cougars will for the season finale at 3:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at Christopher.
