Junior AJ Ranii scored two goals to rally the San Marcos boys soccer team to escape with a 3-3 draw against San Luis Obispo on Monday.
“After a dismal week of soccer, our boys put in a solid shift tonight,” San Marcos coach Paul McLean said. “It is hard to come back from 3-1 at halftime, but we dug in and created many chances. Our effort was so much better tonight and it showed in our ability to battle back.”
Ranii opened the scoring on a glancing header of a cross from Miguel Mondragon in the 30th minute. But San Luis Obispo answered wth three quick goals before the end of the first half.
Senior Levi Sheffey started the comeback by putting a ball away during a goal-mouth scrum in the 60th minute. Ten minutes later, freshman Leo Olivo got loose on the right side, beat two players and ripped a shot off the course bar. Ranii reacted first to the ball and slotted home the rebound to tie the score at 3-3.
McLean praised senior Alejandro Soriano for winning balls and distributing in the midfield and Olivo for igniting the offense all game long,”
“This was an important response for us as a group,” said McLean.
The Royals (3-2-3) open the South Torrance Tournament on Friday against Redondo Union High School.