San Marcos and Santa Barbara High girls soccer battled to a scoreless draw in the Channel League opener on Tuesday night at Peabody Stadium.
While there were plenty of exciting plays on both sides, the Royals and Dons’ defensive units came to play and shut down every attacking effort of the night.
Despite the lack of scoring, it was a fast-tempo matchup in which San Marcos generated several promising attacks throughout but was sent away by the Santa Barbara High back line.
“It was one of those games where the ball just didn’t want to go in,” San Marcos head coach Miguel Vences said. “We generated shots, crosses, spent a lot of time in their half but just couldn’t get the goal. I thought Santa Barbara did well staying organized and blocking the middle of the pitch, which forced us to look for other solutions to generate chances.
“Our back line and our keeper did a great job dealing with the transition moments and the direct style of play from Santa Barbara.”
Both teams made late pushes for the go-ahead goal, but neither side could break through and the game ended in a draw.
The Dons were led defensively by goalkeeper Alive Sweeney and defenders Sofia Lopez, Caroline Gifford, Lena Fackler and Aurelia Agredano. Meanwhile, Madeline Savellano and Kimberly Monroy shined in the midfield.
“We are proud of the team for their work rate, defensive discipline and overall competitiveness,” Santa Barbara High head coach Willie Sims said. “San Marcos has a very talented group of players and we were able to match up with them tonight.
“We will build on the positives from this game and take on our next challenge Thursday night.”
Meanwhile, San Marcos’ defense was anchored by the tandem of Cami Sparks, Lulu Aurell, Susie Leon, Sofia Turenchalk and Stephanie Carranza.
The Dons (1-1-3, 0-0-1 Channel League) will host crosstown rival Dos Pueblos on Thursday at 5:15 p.m. Meanwhile, the Royals (1-2-1, 0-0-1 CL) will host Oxnard on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.
Bishop Diego 2, Laguna Blanca 1
The Cardinals snapped an almost two-year losing streak with a victory over their crosstown rival Owls on Tuesday in Santa Barbara. The win is Bishop Diego’s first since Jan. 24, 2024.
“I’m so excited for our kids. It’s been a long, hard-fought path for our older players, and it was great for the younger kids to experience their first wins as a Cardinal,” Bishop Diego head coach Dillan Bennett said. “Today was a great test, as Laguna is well-coached and has a talented team.
“While I’m very excited for our team, I’m very grateful for their win today. I can finally retire the Ted Lasso mustache from my face.”
Laguna Blanca came out of the gates on a mission, firing eight shots on goal in the opening half with Arden Blagden finding the back of the net for the early 1-0 lead.
However, the Cardinals responded with a dominant second half that saw them outshoot the Owls 14-3, including back-to-back scores from Kate Douglas and Kaitlyn Garcia to clinch the win.
“We started to understand the purpose of playing the ball wide to the sidelines and crashing the box when we take a shot,” Bennett said of the second-half surge. “Then, we got to play back and let our defense do the rest in the last few minutes of the game.
“Our keeper, Lindsay Doyle, saved a number of good shots and key momentum going in our way. Kaitlyn Garcia and Abbie Hubbs also played really well in the midfield, and it was great to see our youngsters Bryleigh Laurent, Mia Desales and Amaya Martinez play a significant role and put pressure on Laguna’s defense.”
“Our girls had a hard time adjusting to the field and not being able to get a handle on it at certain times,” Laguna Blanca coach Jose Rodriguez said. “Everyone played and put in the work, but unfortunately, not capitalizing early in the game on our opportunities came back to hurt us in the end.
“I want to highlight Elle Harris being able to make the adjustment to center back after our center back, unfortunately, was not able to keep going.”
Bishop Diego (1-4, 1-0 Frontier League) will take on Dos Pueblos on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Dos Pueblos 3, Pacifica 1
The Chargers defended their home pitch with a league victory over the Tritons on Tuesday.
Alma Basave kicked off the scoring with an early penalty kick goal, while Alina Seidel added another goal before the break to take a 2-0 lead into halftime.
Pacifica found the back of the net to cut into the deficit, but Dos Pueblos’ Hazel Burgess provided an insurance goal to help her team clinch the win.
On the defensive end, Kacey Hurley, Sophie Rodriguez and Ruby Streatfeild all had a hand in limiting the Tritons to just two shots.
The Chargers are now 4-1-0 overall and 1-0-0 in Channel League action.