By Benjamin Minch, Staff Writer
After a three game losing streak, Fountain Valley Girls Soccer beat Los Alamitos with a score of 1-0 on Thursday, January 19. They were successful in grasping this crucial win against their greatest rival in order to bounce back into the season.
The game started off with great momentum as both teams struggled to put the ball in the goal. A near miss by Kylie Wilson (‘18) caused Los Al to stumble, but they quickly bounced back with five shot attempts on goal, none of which went in.
The passing in the beginning of the game started off a little scrappy, with each team turning over the ball in a rapid manner. Los Al had a near goal attempt, but it was easily blocked by Allison Bebout (‘18).
Another great 1-v-1 stop by goalie Aysia Buendia (‘17) led the score to remain 0-0 going into halftime.
The start of the second half was filled with bad calls and many aggressiveness from the players. A player on Los Al attempted to flop, a fake fall, inside the penalty box, but the referee proceeded to give Fountain Valley the ball. The Barons had a corner kick, but whiffed a header just high off the goal and missed.
Finally, about halfway through the half, Marissa Lynch (‘18) received the ball off of a pass from Brianna Giuntoli (‘18) and scored with a kick to the top corner. The Griffins were furious with this shot, claiming that it was offside, but the referee refused to change the score and Fountain Valley led 1-0.
The rest of the game, Los Al furiously attempted to score a goal, which was seen by their rushed demeanor and nervous coach, while the Barons tried to stall the game. The Griffins took five unsuccessful shots on goal, each blocked by Buendia.
The Barons succeeded in stalling the game and the clutch defense of Sandra Hawryla (‘17) and Bebout prevented Los Al from scoring a single goal.
The Barons came out with the win and are now 1-4-1 in League. They will continue on to battle against Newport Harbor in their next game.
“Hopefully this win will lift our spirits and help us to keep playing hard,” said Jackie Rodriguez (‘18).
