San Dieguito girls junior varsity B soccer team faced off against La Costa Canyon on home turf, Tuesday afternoon, ending with a 0-1 lost. .

Starting with the ball, the San Dieguito girls initially pushed towards the LCC goal line. For the first 20 minutes of the game there appeared to be an even match off. The teams continued to race the ball across the halfway line, making few attempts at scoring.

As the wind blew the bent the corner flags backward, LCC shot on goal. SDA goalie, sophomore Jenna Weinhofer made two saves and with a strong downfield kick the pressure was put back on the La Costa Canyon defense.

The bleachers were rather empty, but occasional shouts arose from parents of players and spirited SDA students. With 17:38 left on the clock for the first half, LCC took a shot on goal, scoring for the first and last time.

Shouts arose from the bleachers as SDA made progress downfield, making two hopeful shots on goal, but achieving no success. Freshman Amanda Engert, said, “We just weren’t challenging the ball enough and wanting it,” as she reflected on the game.

The energy began to heighten on and off the field with minutes left in the half. The watchers in the crowd were huddled in the cold, intently watching the hard working players. The offense and defense of both teams were evenly matched. For every charge downfield there was an equally powerful upfield kick.

At half time, LCC led 1-0. San Dieguito’s girls ran onto the field following a discussion with Coach Craig Bedford. LCC kicked off the second half with a right boot towards SDA’s goalie. It started to drizzle, six minutes into the half as SDA built up steam.

Beginning to dominate the field, SDA made a close goal attempt with 24 minutes left. As the crowd began to build, more shouts could be heard from SDA supporters, remaining hopeful as the LCC defense was pressured.

The back and forth pattern was established again and proceeded in this manner until the last four minutes of the game. Nearing the end of the game and down by one, the junior varsity B team shot three times on goal. Team captain, freshman Riley Black, shouted, “Give it all you got.” “I like to inspire my teammates and try to pump then up for the games,” she said afterwards.

Unfortunately, none of the final goal attempts reached the net, and the clock ran down to zero.

Despite their loss, the team remained positive. Sophomore Monica Luong said, “It was a tough game and I think we did pretty well…we put up a good fight.”
Black added, “We can do a lot better and we will come back stronger next time.”

Furthermore, Bedford said, “This was actually a very poor performance compared to what I usually see with the girls. I don’t think they had the fire and the hunger that they usually show.” He added, “We need to work as a team a little bit more and be less concerned about the individual.”

“The girls are doing well. They are understanding my system of play and at times I see some real good soccer,” said Bedford.
Freshman Samantha Barry added, “The season has been really fun and I think we have been doing well.”