Bulldog girls prevail in 2OT thriller
| Saturday, Feb 28 2009 02:17 AM
Last Updated Friday, Mar 27 2009 01:02 PM
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Golden Valley's Elizabeth Lopez, left, races to the ball against Clovis North's Alesia Francis during the first half of their game at Tice Park on Friday.
It was patented soccer for the Golden Valley High School girls team Friday night.
The Bulldogs thwarted several excellent Clovis North scoring chances in the first nine minutes of the CIF Central Section Division III championship game, then clamped down the defense.
And when senior Kristina Garcia broke a scoreless tie one minute into the first overtime period, Golden Valley had the edge it needed.
That goal stood up. The Bulldogs' 1-0 win gave Golden Valley (11-10-2) the first Central Section girls championship in any sport in the school's history.
"It was just luck," Garcia said of her goal. "I was there at the right time. I forgot how it all happened."
It happened when a loose ball wound up at Garcia's feet about 20 yards in front of the goal. Garcia's shot sailed into the left corner of the net, out of the reach of diving Clovis North goaltender Stephanie Hoffman.
The match wasn't over. Golden Valley still had to keep the Broncos from scoring for the remaining nine minutes of that OT period, plus the 10-minute second overtime.
The defense, which had played so well after halftime, was up to the challenge.
"In the second half, the girls knew they had to come out and give everything they had," said Golden Valley coach Kelee Kjack. "I felt like they stepped up their intensity."
The biggest factor after halftime was Golden Valley consistently winning balls, which didn't happen in the first half.
"If you're not getting to the ball first, it's hard to win the game," Kjack said.
Clovis North (17-12-2) had its best scoring chance three minutes into the game. A looping kick landed in the box, and goalkeeper Clarissa Negrete got to it a moment too late.
It bounced over her head directly to 5-foot-11 Clovis North forward Samantha Maxwell, only 10 feet from the goal.
"I thought she was going to score," Negrete said.
But Maxwell couldn't get a clean kick away. Instead, she tried to bounce the ball off her chest into the goal. Negrete managed to tip it away.
Less than 30 seconds later, Negrete had challenge when Clovis North's leading goal scorer Kayleigh Reap maneuvered past sweeper K.T. Toerner for an open shot from 20 yards in front of the net. Negrete' s diving save kept the match scoreless.
