Dos Pueblos girls soccer secured a 3-2 victory over Ventura to open up Channel League action on Thursday at Scott O’Leary Stadium.
After falling behind 1-0 thanks to an early goal by the Cougars, the Chargers found the equalizer later in the first half.
Katie Peterson took a corner kick for Dos Pueblos and served the ball in to Ryan Calkins, who finished it off to knot the game up 1-1. That score held into halftime.
Coming out of the half, the Chargers were aggressive on the offensive attack.
Early in the second, Alma Basave fed a lead pass to Maleka Wilcox, who found the back of the net for the breakaway goal and the lead.
The final Dos Pueblos goal of the night was thanks to great teamwork by a trio of Chargers. First, Maddy Jones sent a long ball that was chased down by Calkins.
Calkins then beat a Ventura defender and crossed the ball to Wilcox, who tapped it in for her second score of the match.
The Cougars netted one more goal in the second half, but the Chargers held on for the 3-2 victory.
“I would like to commend our two center backs, Anastasia Brunner and Audrey Kling, for their exceptional composure under pressure,” Dos Pueblos coach Marco Medina said.
Dos Pueblos (1-2-1, 1-0) will take on Buena on the road next week.
Pacifica 2, San Marcos 0
The Royals struggled offensively in a Channel League-opening loss to Pacifica.
“It was a very tough first game to lose,” San Marcos coach Brian “Ziggy” Ziegenhagen said. “Pacifica deserves a lot of credit for their physical presence and for capitalizing on our poor giveaway passes in crucial areas of the field.”
San Marcos actually had possession for most of the first 10 minutes, but the Tritons broke through and scored in the 14th minute to take the lead.
From there, Pacifica dominated the match, beating the Royals to the ball consistently and playing physically.
That physicality was rewarded when they scored the insurance goal in the 31st minute to go up by a pair of scores.
From there, both defenses tightened up and neither team scored in the second half.
“Our girls responded really well in the second half,” Ziegenhagen said. “Sophomore midfielder Zeina Matni and senior captain Leilani Venegas lead the attack keeping the score close”
San Marcos (1-2-0, 0-0-1) will host Cabrillo in a non-league contest on Monday.
Laguna Blanca 6, Villanova Prep 2
The Owls, playing with only one substitute, turned in a great offensive performance for a league-opening win over Villanova Prep.
Jordyn Garcia led the charge with a brace, while Milla Hirsch, Paloma Lujan, Regina Lujan and Natalie Bianchi each found the back of the net once.
“The team played well,” Laguna Blanca coach Jose Rodriguez said. “The team is starting to play more together and communicating better. We needed this win.”
Boys Soccer
Ventura 4, Dos Pueblos 1
The Chargers couldn’t contain the Cougar offense in a 4-1 loss to begin Channel League play.
After Ventura scored in the fourth minute, Dos Pueblos freshman Chris Barreto answered back by rocketing a shot from 20 yards out that ricocheted off a defender and into the net.
It was Barreto’s first goal of his high school career.
From there, the match was all Ventura as the Cougars scored in the 45th, 60th and 75th minutes to walk away with the three-goal victory.
Kaj Laub, who was battling through an illness, was Dos Pueblos coach Matt York’s Man of the Match for his Chargers.
“[Laub] gave tremendous effort all night on the offensive zone and even ran all the way back to stifle some of their attacks on defense,” York said. “He constantly faced double and triple teams when he had the ball, but was our hardest worker out on the field tonight.”
Senior JP Garcia and Jack Wilby each turned in solid performances, with both players spending time at goalkeeper.
Dos Pueblos (2-1-3, 0-1) will face off against the Buena Bulldogs at home on Tuesday.
Pacifica 3, San Marcos 2
A pair of late goals powered Pacifica to the victory over the Royals on Thursday.
San Marcos jumped out to an early lead, scoring in the opening minutes thanks to a goal by senior Favi Rosales.
However, the Tritons answered back in the first half with the equalizer to make it 1-1.
Later in the first, San Marcos senior Cash Evers capitalized on a loose ball following a corner kick and scored, putting the Royals back out in front.
Pacifica took over the match as the night went on, eventually scoring two goals late in the second half to secure the victory.
“Pacifica played a strong second half and we struggled to play our composed game,” San Marcos coach Paul McLean said. “They were first to most of the balls where we were first to balls in the first half of the game.”
“We learned some good things about building from the back. We were excited to welcome junior Jose Ramirez and senior Stevie Bradley back to the field after long injuries. Senior Easton Rose did a great job working hard and creating chances for us on the wing.”
The Royals (1-2-1, 0-1-0) have a matchup with Rio Mesa next Tuesday.
Thacher 3, Laguna Blanca 1
The Owls couldn’t keep up with Thacher, resulting in a 3-1 loss.
After Laguna Blanca missed a trio of scoring opportunities early, Thacher got on the board first in the 16th minute with a shot that was just out of reach of the Owls goalkeeper.
That 1-0 score held for the entirety of the first half.
The Owls then applied the pressure coming out of the locker room, and senior captain Andreas McClintok broke free and beat the Thacher goalkeeper for the equalizer.
In the 57th minute, Thacher was awarded a free kick from just outside the box and they buried it, jumping back out in front at 2-1.
Just two minutes later, Thacher scored the dagger, finding the top right corner of the goal for the 3-1 advantage.
“The Laguna boys played magnificently,” Owls coach Rick Rodriguez said. “I could not be more proud of them.”
