SD Prep Sports:

2006-07 Winter Sports
Metro Conference

Girls Soccer
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WPSL: Jen-Lalor Nielsen still leads by example
W-League: Sofia Perez has Mexico teetering on Women's World Cup berth
Women's Pro Soccer Stars of the Year

Barons advance to CIF semifinals
Posted March 1, 2007
Bonita Vista, seeded fifth in he Division I field, fell, 2-0, to top-seeded Torrey Pines (21-0-3) in Wednesday’s semifinals. “We had opportunities but could not finish,” Barons coach Ron Pietila said. “Senior Marisa Matkin struck a ball, early in the second half that hit the Torrey Pines goalkeeper in the head but then bounced away. Torrey Pines has the finest team I have seen in the section in many years.”

The Barons, who finished atop the Mesa League standings with a 9-1-0 league record and finished 17-6-3 overall, advanced to the semifinals with a pair of 1-0 victories against Carlsbad (first round) and Rancho Bernardo (quarterfinals). Senior Briana Estolano scored on a free kick in the 25th minute to supply the game-winning goal against Carlsbad (7-7-6) while junior Elie Magracia scored in the 82nd minute on a rebound after a shot by junior Sarah Grable had initially hit the crossbar. Linsey McFarland, who Pietila said did a “wonderful” job in directing the team’s defense, had three saves in the first round victory and set a school record with 20 saves in the win against fourth-seeded Rancho Bernardo (9-8-2).

Bonita Vista’s defense allowed Carlsbad six shots total in the teams’ playoff opener.

Pietila attributed the team’s post-season success to its veteran players: Estolano, Matkin and Magracia, the 2006-07 Metro-Mesa Player of the Year.

“The team developed a sense of pride and determination. Athletic and soccer abilities were already in place,” Pietila said.

•Eastlake (9-8-6) ended its season with a 2-0 loss to second-seeded San Pasqual (15-1-3) in the Division II quarterfinals. The Titans, who finished 6-3-1 in Mesa League play, had advanced following a 2-1 home field win against Point Loma in the opening round of action on Feb. 21. Nicole Williams and Alexis Barbara each scored single goals for Eastlake.

•Marian Catholic 16-4-3) ended its season with a 4-1 loss to third-seeded Horizon Christian (18-5-2) in the Division IV quarterfinals. The Crusaders, who finished 7-1-2 in South Bay League play, had advanced with an 11-0 first-round victory against visiting Foothills Christian (12-6-2) as Rebecca Portor and Jazmynn Himan each scored three goals, Amber Baker scored twice and Bianca Jimenez, Tiffany Verduzco and Brenna Gates all had one goal.

Hilltop, Bonita Vista are Metro's 2006-07 league champions

Posted Feb. 22, 2007
Hilltop (8-1-1, 13-8-2) finished two points ahead of Marian Catholic (7-1-2, 15-3-3) to win the South Bay League title. As a reward, both teams earned home-field playoff games. Hilltop was scheduled to host Grossmont (8-10-2) in Wednesday’s opening round of the Division II playoffs while Marian Catholic was slated to host Foothills Christian (12-5-2) in a Division IV game.

Photo: Bonita Vista's Sarah Grable on the move against Otay Ranch.

Eastlake (6-3-1, 8-7-6) was the fourth Metro Conference team to gain entry into the girls soccer playoffs (joining Mesa League champion Bonita Vista). The Titans, who finished in third place in the Mesa League standings, were scheduled to host Point Loma (14-8) in Wednesday’s Division II first-round matchup.

Quarterfinal-round action commences Saturday, Feb. 24, with division semifinal play scheduled Wednesday, Feb. 28.
The Division I championship game is March 3 at 2 p.m. at Mt. Carmel High School. The Division II championship game is March 3 at noon at Torrey Pines High School. The Division III championship game is March 3 at 6 p.m. at Mt. Carmel High School. The Division IV championship game is March 3 at 4 p.m. at Torrey Pines High School.

Otay Ranch, meanwhile, had a chance to win this year’s Mesa League title after trailing Bonita Vista by two points in the standings entering the teams’ climactic regular season finale on Feb. 15. However, the host Barons (9-1-0, 15-5-3) prevailed, 4-1, to not only keep the Mustangs (7-2-1, 10-11-2) in second place but out of the playoffs as well.

Bonita Vista defeated Carlsbad, 1-0, in Wednesday’s opening round of the Division I playoffs to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals at fourth-seeded Rancho Bernardo (9-7-2). Briana Estolano scored on a free kick midway through the first half to supply the game-winning goal while Baron goalkeeper Linsey McFarland made three saves to record the shutout against the Avocado League Lancers (7-7-6).

"We were due for some pay-back," said BV coach Ron Pietila in regard to the Barons’ ouster in the first round of last year’s playoffs.

The Mesa League championship game clearly provided the momentum. Bonita Vista struck early in its showdown game against Otay Ranch, leading 2-0 on goals by Sarah Grable and Elie Magracia. The Mustangs, who applied the early pressure despite trailing in the contest, halved the deficit to 2-1 on a goal by Courtney Zendejas. However, Bonita Vista was clearly the dominant team in the second half and scored two more goals — one each by Marisa Matkin and Grable (her second goal of the game).

Pietila, who called his team’s league title "very gratifying," said his team was motivated by its 2-0 setback at Eastlake on Feb. 8 that helped give Otay Ranch the opportunity to play for the league title.

"The Eastlake game was a real wake-up call. We got out-played," Pietila said. "(But against Otay Ranch), we restored order among ourselves. We were focused. We were excited. That can win you a championship game. But Otay Ranch came out excited. They were putting on pressure."

"We gave it a go. It didn’t work out our way," said Mustang co-coach Ryan Mendez, whose team featured 10 seniors this season. "They (the Barons) are a very good team. They beat us fair and square."

Titans do it again -- hand Barons a league loss

Posted Feb. 15, 2007
It would not be too far from the truth to count the number of losses the Bonita Vista High School girls soccer team has yielded to South County opponents over the last 20 years on one hand.

Hilltop ended the Barons’ national-record Metro Conference unbeaten streak in 2005. Eastlake ended Bonita Vista’s grasp on the Mesa League championship last year with a dramatic 2-1 come-from-behind victory in the final minutes of the game.
The Titans scored more prestige points for their program with a 2-0 victory against the vaunted Barons on Feb. 8 to become what is believed to be the first Metro Conference team to record victories in consecutive seasons against Bonita Vista.
Eastlake coach Amy Gutowski would like to see her team continue that streak.

“Last year we won the league banner. We wanted to do it again this season but I don’t think we’re going to be able to do it,” said Gutowski, whose team improved to 4-3-1 in Mesa League play, 6-5-6 overall with the Feb. 8 “titanic” victory.

Despite the loss to Eastlake, Bonita Vista entered Thursday’s regular season finale against visiting Otay Ranch with a chance to secure the league banner. A victory against the Mustangs would hand the Barons outright possession of this year’s Mesa League championship while a loss to the Mustangs would place that in jeopardy.

The Titans’ 2-0 victory over Bonita Vista was not much of a shocker as Eastlake controlled the majority of play throughout the match. Rather, it was what Gutowski called a “must win” for her team.

Junior midfielder/forward Alexis Barbara scored 15 minutes into the game to give the Titans a 1-0 lead after the Barons had opened with early pressure on Eastlake’s defense.

A turning point in the game came when Titan freshman goalkeeper Ali McGuire blocked a penalty kick that could have tied the contest.

Sophomore forward Kiara Johnson then made it 2-0 Eastlake five minutes into the second half of play.

The defense, led by sophomore Rachel Naranjo, proved nearly unbeatable thereafter.

“I give my girls credit. They fought hard,” Gutowski said. “The goalkeeper saves that penalty shot. If that’s not exciting, then I don’t know what is.”

The Titans advanced to last year’s San Diego Section Division I quarterfinals after defeating visiting Carlsbad in a first-round playoff game. Eastlake will be competing for a spot in the Division II playoffs this season.

The Titans returned 11 players off last season’s Mesa League championship team but not all were starters, Gutowski said.
“We’ve had a lot of injuries. We’re very young. We have only one senior on the roster,” Gutowski said.

Bonita Vista took an 8-1-0 league record and 14-5-3 overall mark into Thursday’s regular season ender against Otay Ranch (7-1-1, 10-10-2). The Barons positioned themselves for a run at this year’s league title following Tuesday’s 6-1 win at Chula Vista. Elie Magracia and Sarah Grable each scored two goals and Carly Schoch and Marisa Matkin each scored once against the Spartans (3-5-1, 8-9-2).

Bonita Vista’s ongoing success has always been due to the fine soccer players who appear on campus, according to veteran coach Ron Pietila.

“They mostly arrive, having been tutored along the way by local leagues. Typically the athletes begin in local AYSO leagues and then move on to ‘club’ competition,” Pietila said. “Once they begin their high school careers, it is a matter of promoting spirit and pride. That part of the equation has recently been more difficult, as players have so many more interests that occupy their time.”

The Mustangs set themselves up for a run at a co-championship by defeating Sweetwater, 4-1, behind goals by Britney Bennett, Vero Valderrama, Angie Soberanes and Courtney Zendejas.

Bennett and Valderrama each had made verbal commitments to attend SDSU this fall prior to the resignation of Aztec head coach Mike Giuliano. The two prep standouts are both four-year players for Otay Ranch along with teammates Jessica Hernandez and Britni Esellar. Ryan Mendez, who coaches the team along with Mike Diaz, said that foursome, along with third-year player Alyssa Rodriguez, forms the core unit of this season’s team.

“Those are our top players. They have pretty much carried the team,” Mendez said.

Bennett and Hernandez each scored goals in a 2-0 victory at Sweetwater on Jan. 25 while Bennett had three goals and Hernandez scored twice in a 7-1 dismantling of San Ysidro on Jan. 23. Shannon Roberts scored in the final 10 minutes to enable Otay Ranch to salvage a 1-1 tie against Chula Vista on Jan. 18.

Bonita Vista downed Otay Ranch, 3-1, in the teams’ first-round match on Jan. 30 in a night-time match on the Mustangs’ turf field. In that contest, Grable scored three goals to lead the Barons. The match was hard-fought and physical, according to coaches’ reports.

“Every year we’ve had a winning team. This year, we’ve stepped up,” Mendez said. “We’ve got two players — Vero and Britney — who are headed to college.”

Mendez said the Mustangs’ goal was to capture the Mesa League title and to qualify for the upcoming Division I playoffs. “For us, we feel we can compete with the top programs,” Mendez said.

Eastlake remained in third place in the league standings following Tuesday’s 4-1 win against San Ysidro as junior forward Nicole Williams scored three goals.

Mesa League
Girls Standings
(Through Feb. 13)
League Standings
School W-L-T Pts
Bonita Vista 8-1-0 24
Otay Ranch 7-1-1 22
Eastlake 5-3-1 16
Chula Vista 3-5-1 10
Sweetwater 2-7-0 6
San Ysidro 0-8-1 1
Note: three points for a win, one point for a tie.

Tuesday, Feb. 13
Bonita Vista 6, Chula Vista 1
Otay Ranch 4, Sweetwater 1
Eastlake 4, San Ysidro 1

Overall Records
•Bonita Vista 14-5-3
•Otay Ranch 10-10-2
•Eastlake 7-6-6
•Chula Vista 8-9-2
•Sweetwater 8-12-0
•San Ysidro 0-8-1
Note: based on reported scores.

Barons stake claim to Mesa lead with 2-0 win against Titans
Posted Jan. 25, 2007
History has a knack of repeating itself and the Bonita Vista Barons girls soccer team would like to interpret that to its benefit after Tuesday’s 2-0 Mesa League victory against visiting Eastlake.

The last time these teams met in league play, Eastlake handed perennial league champion Bonita Vista a 2-1 upset loss en route to winning last year’s Mesa League championship title outright. It was the first time the Barons had failed to win at least a share of a league title since their inception. The string of BV league titles extended 24 years.

The Barons hope to make sure history does not repeat itself this year with another Eastlake championship but would like to see history repeat itself from their glory days with a return to the top of the league standings.

Elie Magracia scored both goals Tuesday and Linsey McFarland made eight saves as Bonita Vista extended its league record to 3-0, 9-4-3 overall.

The teams’ previous meeting had ended in a 1-1 tie earlier this season in the Vaquero tournament.

Otay Ranch, considered a top contender along with Eastlake for this year’s league title, had a crimp put its championship fortunes by virtue of a 1-1 draw against Chula Vista on Tuesday.

After Tuesday’s matches, the Barons were the lone 3-0 team in the Mesa League and sat alone atop the league standings.
“I believe Otay Ranch is still the team to beat,” said Bonita Vista coach Ron Pietila. “They have athletes and experience. Both Otay Ranch and Bonita Vista have beaten Eastlake. I see it Otay Ranch, Bonita Vista, Eastlake ... with Chula Vista very dangerous and capable.”

The Barons kicked off league play with a 7-1 victory against Sweetwater on Jan. 16 and followed that with a 5-1 win against Southwest two days later.

Marisa Matkin led the BV scoring parade against the Red Devils with two goals, followed by teammates Lorena Chavez, Briana Estolano, Sarah Grable, Magracia and Yasmin Davalos with one each.

Estolano, Magracia, Grable, Chavez and Matkin scored goals against the Cougars (0-2, 9-6-1).

Bonita Vista plays at Otay Ranch on Jan. 30 and at Eastlake on Feb. 8 before closing out regular season play with a Feb. 15 home match against Otay Ranch.

Notepad
•Bonita Vista kicked off the 2007 portion of its schedule with three high profile non-league games, defeating Patrick Henry (3-2) and Mira Mesa (2-1) and losing to Vista (2-0).

•Eastlake tied Patrick Henry, 2-2, in another non-league game to start the calendar year.

Girls Soccer
2006-07 Scoreboard

Mesa League
Tuesday, Jan. 16
Bonita Vista 7, Sweetwater 1
Chula Vista 2, San Ysidro 1
Thursday, Jan. 18
Bonita Vista 5, San Ysidro 1
Eastlake 3, Sweetwater 0
Chula Vista 1, Otay Ranch 1
Tuesday, Jan. 23
Bonita Vista 2, Eastlake 0
Chula Vista 2, Sweetwater 1

South Bay League
Tuesday, Jan. 16
Hilltop 2, Mar Vista 0
Southwest 4, Castle Park 1
Marian Catholic 4, Montgomery 0
Thursday, Jan. 18
Marian Catholic 1, Hilltop 0
Southwest 1, Montgomery 0
Mar Vista 4, Castle Park 0
Tuesday, Jan. 23
Marian Catholic 7, Castle Park 0
Mar Vista 1, Southwest 0

Citrus League
Tuesday, Jan. 16
River Valley 2, Midway Baptist 0
Foothills Christian 5, Calvary Christian 0

Bonita Vista girls soccer: Just like old times
Posted Dec. 7, 2006
Twenty years ago, Ron Pietila was at the helm of the Metro Conference's unquestioned flagship team. Bonita Vista was coming off a San Diego Section co-championship with Valhalla the previous season and the 1987-88 Barons squad still packed a formidable punch, as evidenced by its eventual runner-up finish to Torrey Pines in the Class 3A championship game.

At that time, the pecking order of the Metro Conference was thus: Bonita Vista, followed in those days by Hilltop and Chula Vista and, frankly, not too much else. Southwest was among the early powers in conference with Class 2A runner-up finishes in 1984 and 1985. The sport was still in its infancy, having only begun play as a CIF-sanctioned sport in 1982.

Castle Park, Marian Catholic and Sweetwater were some of the programs that began their rise in the late 1980s.

Pietila celebrated his first win in his return as Baron head coach on Tuesday. The first words out of his mouth when addressing his team following its 3-1 Barons-Mustangs tournament victory against visiting Valhalla were cryptic: “Just like old times.”

For the uninformed, Pietila is the godfather of girls soccer in the South Bay. He was instrumental in the sport’s founding in the Metro Conference while then coaching at Southwest and he continues to serve as tournament director of what is now known as the Barons-Mustangs tournament, celebrating its 27th year.

After leading the Raiders to four league titles in five years and back-to-back CIF finals appearances, Pietila came to Bonita Vista in 1986, where he had a chance to coach his daughters.

After compiling a formidable 318-34-28 record, 13 league titles, seven division finals appearances and two section co-championships through 1999, Pietila took on new challenges by building the program from scratch at Otay Ranch High School, where he still teaches. “We got better every year. We made the playoffs every year. They’ve got a great team now,” the elder Pietila said.

However, the man affectionately known as “Coach Pie” felt he had unfinished business at Bonita Vista and, when his daughter Ronne stepped down as the Barons’ coach, he felt the timing was right to return to where he had achieved some of his greatest success.

“It’s fun,” Pietila said after Tuesday’s win. “The kids are better kids than I was led to believe and better soccer players than I was led to believe. After three years, it’s a pleasant surprise.”

Tuesday’s victory leveled the Barons’ early season record at 1-1, with the outcome of Thursday’s match against visiting Poway likely to determine whether Bonita Vista advances to the playoffs in this weekend’s tournament finals in what is now known as the Barons-Mustangs tournament.

Olivia Johnston and Marisa Matkin each scored first-half goals and Sarah Grable added a second-half strike to power the Barons to their opening win of the season while goalkeeper Linsey McFarland made nine saves.

The Norsemen tied the game at a goal apiece when Ellen Chunn scored in the 35th minute but Bonita Vista promptly broke the deadlock one minute later when Matkin scored her goal for a 2-1 halftime lead.

The Barons kicked off their season with a 2-1 loss to Rancho Bernardo. Grable had the lone tally for Bonita Vista in that game.
Bonita Vista had its lengthy string of league titles ended last season by Eastlake and part of the challenge upon Pietila’s return will be to return the program to prominence.

“I did leave here abruptly,” the local godfather of soccer said. “I did want to make one last shot of trying to get (the program) back to where it was.”

The Barons — revisited — appear to have taken that first step Tuesday.

Tournament notepad
What is now known as the Barons-Mustangs tournament began in the spring of 1981 — a year before teams actually began play in the Metro Conference. Marian Catholic, Southwest, Coronado and Clairemont participated in that inaugural field. Teams played a round-robin schedule, with the team with the most points earning the championship title. Marian Catholic captured the first title of what was then known as the Raiders Girls Soccer Tournament by defeating Coronado (4-3) and Clairemont (8-0) and tying Southwest (1-1).

The tournament has since evolved into a multi-divisional format stressing balanced play and draws most of the teams throughout the San Diego Section. Eight divisional championship matches took place in 2005 as the field approached 100 teams. A junior varsity division has increasingly become popular in recent years.

Pietila-coached teams have won six tournament titles (1983 at Southwest and 1986, 1988, 1995, 1997 and 1998 at Bonita Vista).

Over its history, the tournament has served as a proving ground for future collegiate standouts and national team players. Among those are Parade magazine All-Americans Rita Hirmez (Mt. Carmel) and Sara Barnett (Bonita Vista), U.S. national team players Shannon MacMillian (San Pasqual) and Jennifer Lalor (Bonita Vista), Mexican national team players Linnea Quinones and Lina Valderrama, both Bonita Vista alumna, and WUSA performers Allie Kemp (San Dieguito), Mandy Clemens (USDHS) Lalor and MacMillian.

Pietila noted that Marian Catholic and Southwest battled to a 1-1 draw that first year in front of a few curious spectators. He further noted those first participants, players, coaches, officials and spectators could not have predicted the lofty heights to which girl’s/women’s soccer would ascend.

Barons-Mustangs Girls Soccer Tournament
Playoff schedule
Saturday, Dec. 9
Bonita Vista High School
•Semifinals (JV Unlimited Division, JV Limited Division), 8 a.m.
•Semifinals (Unlimited Division, Limited Division), 10 a.m.
•Semifinals (Premier Division), noon
•Finals (JV Unlimited Division, JV Limited Division), noon
•Finals (Limited Division, JV Classic Division), 2 p.m.

Otay Ranch High School
•Semifinals (JV Unlimited Division, JV Classic Division), 8 a.m.
•Semifinals (Unlimited Division, Classic Division), 10 a.m.
•Semifinals (Premier Division, JV Premier Division), noon
•Finals (Unlimited Division, Classic Division), 2 p.m.
•Final (JV Premier Division), 3 p.m.
•Final (Premier Division), 4 p.m.

Division Alignments
Premier Division: Bonita Vista, Otay Ranch, Cathedral Catholic, Granite Hills, Westview, Valhalla, Fallbrook, Carlsbad, Poway, Rancho Bernardo, Torrey Pines, La Costa Canyon, Christian.
Unlimited Division: Steele Canyon, Francis Parker, West Hills, Scripps Ranch, Helix, Patrick Henry, Hilltop, Mission Hills, Grossmont, Bishop’s, Escondido, Horizon, Our Lady of Peace, Eastlake, San Pasqual, El Capitan.