Soccer: Surprising run comes to an end

Gavilan’s best season came to an end Tuesday in the second round of the North Region Community College playoffs. The Rams, seeded No. 10, lost 3-1 at No. 2 San Francisco City College. “I am really happy with how far we made it,” said Gavilan coach Justin Johnson. “I am proud of being able to build something for the community and put Gilroy’s name on the map.” Gavilan qualified for the playoff for the first time. And it was the first lost in eight games for the Rams. “Everyone is proud of themselves and what they did this year,” Johnson said. “What makes this team great is they never like to lose. They hate to lose more than they like winning.” Gavilan fell behind 2-0 early in the game but then stepped up the intensity. “That kind of woke us up,” Johnson said. “We started off less than stellar. It was not how we wanted to play. But we were feeling pretty good coming out of the half.” The Rams went into halftime down 2-0 after Alejandro Gaeta just missed on a scoring chance. Miles Mammen scored on a header off a pass from Fabian Ruiz in the first three minutes to cut the deficit in half. “San Francisco did a good job of weathering the storm and absorbing our pressure,” Johnson said. Eric Saavedra made a great save on a set piece in the second half, and Eddie Moya stepped up his game at the center midfield spot. But San Francisco scored with 15 minutes left on a breakaway to put the game away.