Dons deal Trojans a surprising loss
The CVHS varsity soccer team suffered an unexpected 4-0 defeat against Arroyo High School on Dec. 13. The team entered the match confident of a victory, following a decisive 4-0 victory over San Lorenzo earlier in the week. They assumed this game would follow a similar pattern after defeating Arroyo 2-0 in last year’s season. However, the outcome proved to be a surprising and humbling experience.
The game started with the Trojans controlling possession. Through their frequent and precise passes, they quickly reached the goal of the opposing team, and the team’s left winger, Emilio Gutierrez, took the first shot on goal. Despite Gutierrez’s strong effort, Arroyo’s goalie managed a last-minute save. Capitalizing on the opportunity, the goalkeeper punted the ball across the field to the team’s striker, who skillfully shot it into the net soon after, scoring the first goal against CVHS.
Although this goal might’ve been surprising, the Trojans still believed that they could achieve a victory, even after Arroyo scored a second goal a couple of minutes before halftime.
“We can still win,” said coach Juan Escalante proudly when asked about the surprising results of the first half of the match.
The next half started in Arroyo’s possession, but CVHS quickly received possession of the ball and began heading towards the goal. However, these efforts were quickly thwarted by the Dons’ defenders, who stole possession and sent the ball across the field to their offense. Within five minutes, the Dons doubled their lead over CVHS. For the majority of the remaining second half, the Trojans found themselves on the defensive.
When the final whistle blew to mark the end of the game, most of the team’s faces were filled with disappointment.
“I know we’re going to have to go through past film, so we can play our best game on Monday and beat Foothill,” yelled Escalante to the players in his post-game speech, rallying them for their next match against Foothill on Dec. 16.
Was this game a rare mistake by the team, or will this be the pattern for the rest of the season? Only time will tell as the team prepares for upcoming games.