Sage defeats Brethren

Sage Hill boys’ varsity soccer team ended the first round of CIF with a 4-0-1 league record, defeating Brethren Christian at home 6-2. Overall, we dominated the game and took fifteen shots, as opposed to two. One problem remains for sure. We tend to play to the level of the opponent. When we play strong teams, we rise to the challenge and perform well. Unfortunately, the converse is true. Although we scored many goals, we looked very sloppy, especially during the second half on Friday. The two goals against us were unnecessary, and so we lost our record of shut-outs.

Here are some highlights of the game:
In minute 2, forward Jake Blitzer received a great simple pass from Kam Fujii. Jake pushed the ball forward to a striking position and shot it into the back of the net. In minute 5, Jake volleyed the ball to Colton Gyulay, who finished it. In minute 16, Colton scored again off an assist from Ben Capaldi. In minute 38, off a corner kick from Mark Milner, the ball got deflected to Kyle Simon who was making a run toward the goal. Kyle drove the ball past the keeper in a similar fashion to past goals. Kyle thrives on his ability to run into space, anticipating a mistake by the opponent. The first half ended in a 4-0 score.

In minute 42, Ben took the ball from the middle. No one from the opposing team stepped in to put pressure on the ball. Ben did the right thing by attacking space. He took some sort of an “extended” penalty kick and scored from outside the 18-yard box. This happened immediately after Brethren had scored their first goal off a free kick. Jake Blitzer had misjudged the direction of the ball. In minute 77, Ben dribbled through two defenders and crossed a driven ball on the ground from the goal line to Taylor Ross. Taylor pushed the ball into the back of the net.