The Pacifica High girls soccer team claimed a 1-0 victory, holding off Jordan High down the stretch with only nine players on the field.
A couple of heated moments resulted in two Pacifica players being sent off by the referee due to retaliating after being fouled.
The first red card came halfway into the first half after a bit of shoving around the center circle. The second red was awarded in the waking moments of the second half.
“We played for about 20 minutes with nine players,” said Mike Sutton, Pacifica’s girls soccer coach.
The Pacifica High girls soccer team claimed a 1-0 victory, holding off Jordan High down the stretch with only nine players on the field.
A couple of heated moments resulted in two Pacifica players being sent off by the referee due to retaliating after being fouled.
The first red card came halfway into the first half after a bit of shoving around the center circle. The second red was awarded in the waking moments of the second half.
“We played for about 20 minutes with nine players,” said Mike Sutton, Pacifica’s girls soccer coach.
Despite their loss in numbers, the Lady Mariners were able to come away with a win by subbing out tired legs and hustling up and down the field.
The Lady Mariners’ touch opened lanes for midfielders Alexa Castro and Cynthia Ramirez, who faced a Jaguar side that struggled to string passes together.
A two-player disadvantage turned into an advantage for Pacifica as Castro and Ramirez used their control and speed to attack the new pockets of open field.
Their efforts gained them side free kicks and opened up shot opportunities but the Lady Mariners lacked that last bit of brilliance to add another goal to their tally.
Defensively, Pacifica set up shop and did not allow Jordan to generate many meaningful attacking surges.
Pacifica’s defense had excellent coverage on the wings, which were the main avenues of attack for Jordan.
In the closing moments of the gamma, the Lady Mariners held possession of the ball with ease, and suffered little resistance in regaining possession after a misfired pass or touch.
The Pacifica side was a mixture of varsity and junior varsity players, and the team website claims that all squad positions are still up in the air.
For Mike Sutton, this year’s team is still in the works but he says the quality of both returning and new players are indicators for a solid upcoming season.
When asked about this year's squad Sutton responded: “[I feel] great. We got about seven returning starters [and] a good solid six or seven coming up from JV.”
Sutton sees his team forging a winning path this upcoming season.
“[I’m] very optimistic with the returning players as well as with the players coming up,” said Sutton.
Sutton sees his team battling for the first position in the league as well as competing for the CIF title.
“I see us having a solid season and having a good running in CIF,” said Sutton. The Lady Mariners will be looking to improve on last year’s short-lived success.
Losing to Arroyo Grande by one goal in the second round of the CIF playoffs will be on the minds of this year’s varsity squad as it seeks their own silverware.
Under the leadership of Sutton and head coach Alex Camarillo, the Lady Mariners soccer team will be one of this year’s breakout teams to keep an eye on.
With the amount of experience and chemistry between the returning players, and the fresh talent of the new players, it will be interesting to see how they combine on the pitch this season.
