Orestimba High girls’ soccer team remains winless in Trans-Valley League play after a 3-0 shutout loss to Sonora High on senior night at Warrior Stadium on Friday.
The Warriors fell to 2-13-1 overall and 0-8-1 in league play, while the Wildcats improved to 6-7-3 overall and 6-2-2 against TVL opponents to sit in third place in the league standings.
Orestimba head coach Alex Avila said while his team was shutout, the players’ defensive effort led to Sonora attempting difficult shots, an improvement from the previous matchup against their TVL rival, where they lost 7-2 on Jan. 9.
“We did lose 3-0, but were in it. It was a lot closer than 3-0,” Avila said about Friday’s match. “This game, we were forcing them [to go] wide, not allowing them easy shots [and] forcing them to take difficult shots.”
While Orestimba was shutout, the match was closer than what the scoreboard reflected. Throughout the majority of the first half, both teams pushed the ball down the field and nearly had a shot at goal, but the ball was taken by a defender present near the penalty area.
After missing on her first shot attempt, Sonora’s Adyson Kroeze missed another attempt at goal as it went past the left side of the goalpost in the 21st minute. Three minutes later, Orestimba midfielder Juliana Figueroa missed her shot attempt at the Wildcats’ goal.
With the first half coming to an end, Estrella Machado kicked the ball towards the center of Orestimba’s goal to give Sonora a 1-0 going into intermission.
The Wildcats later doubled their lead after a goal from Addison Kraft in the 48th minute. Kraft dribbled past two Warriors defenders and kicked the ball above goalkeeper Andrea Islas for a 2-0 lead.
10 minutes later, Sonora scored another goal, but in an unusual way. Alya Diaz kicked the ball towards Orestimba’s goal, but it was caught by Islas. The ball, however, slipped out of Islas’ hands and rolled past the goal area for the Wildcats’ third goal of the evening.
As Orestimba played its final home match of the season, the team will play its remaining three games on the road, starting with the Ripon High (16-5-1) (7-1-1) on Feb. 4 for a 6 p.m. kickoff. Ripon, who sits at the top of the TVL standings, won its previous match against the Warriors in a 10-0 shutout on Jan. 14.
With this being the final matches for three senior players, the team is motivated to get a win for them, Avila said.
“We have that mindset for every game. The ball doesn’t bounce our way sometimes,” he said. “If we play like this, I believe we can compete with them.”
