After fighting back to tie the game in the final minutes, the Los Alamitos High girls soccer team suffered a crushing 3-2 loss to Mater Dei in the first round of the CIF-SS Division I playoffs on Friday, Feb. 17at Laurel School.
In the second overtime period, the Griffins were called for a foul in the goal box that awarded the Monarchs a penalty kick.
Mater Dei’s Megan Crosson’s shot was stopped by goal keeper Emily Woodworth, who slid to her right to block the low shot. But the rebound came right back towards Crosson, who got a second shot and this time, found the top of the net.
The defeat eliminated the Griffins in the first round of the playoffs and sent the Monarchs on to face Esperanza in the second round.
The game was indicative of the Griffins’ season in which they had multiple chances to take control of the scoreboard, but were either turned away by the defense, or off the mark on their shots.
The Griffins had several young players move up to varsity this season and despite some ups and downs, Griffin Coach Steve Soler said that the team never let up on their effort. It was a tough loss for the seniors and Soler said that he is hopeful the players who will move into leadership roles will answer the call.
“For the young ones they have to learn, I hope they feel the intensity and the passion that some of these girls gave and … hopefully those girls learn from it,” Soler said.
After a scoreless first half, the Griffins and Monarch exchanged goals, with the Monarchs getting on the board first and the Griffins answering a few minutes later. When Mater Dei scored with just a few minutes left in the game, it looked like it might end. But the Griffins fought back and in the extra time, scored the tying goal on a free kick from outside the box that hit the post and ricocheted back into the goal.
