Boys soccer: Mustangs blank Eagles

Steve Virgen

COSTA MESA - What Costa Mesa High senior Eli Solis felt after

scoring his second goal against crosstown rival Estancia, is most

definitely what his entire team felt Wednesday at the Eagles’ field.

“It was a relief man, a big ‘ol relief,” Solis said of the goal that

provided a 2-0 Pacific Coast League win. “(The Eagles) were keeping the

game tight. That goal was extra, extra special. That was one of my best

moments. This (win) boosts our confidence, especially because it was

against Estancia.”

Solis’ goal was spectacular, but more importantly it took the life out

of the Eagles (3-9, 0-3 in the PCL). With less than three minutes left,

he took advantage of a counterattack and sped to the outside just past

midfield on a breakaway. He then cut back inside and quickly shifted

outside again to take Estancia’s goalie out of position and booted the

goal into the back of the net.

Solis also scored Mesa’s goal in the first half, finishing a pass from

freshman Alfonso Pineda, who fired off two shots before assisting Solis.

Other than that, the Eagles controlled the game, especially in the

second half. But the Mustangs (8-3-1, 2-0-1) got the job done.

“(The Eagles) were controlling the ball more than we were,” Mesa Coach

Eugene Day said. “We got lucky. They had three solo shots that could have

gone. In the second half, they really took it to us.”

After a free kick from Estancia freshman Geo Macias, junior Ricardo

Avila nearly scored when his header hit the crossbar in the 60th minute.

Eagles sophomore Noe Martinez almost scored as well in the 66th, but Mesa

goalkeeper Bryce Sheridan grabbed one of his nine saves to help preserve

the shutout.

“We just dominated them,” Estancia Coach Steve Crenshaw said. “We just

couldn’t buy a goal. I was telling the guys, ‘We were trying too hard.

Instead of trying to bury the ball into the back of the net, let’s just

get it past the line.’ ”

While Crenshaw was pleased with his team’s effort, he said the Eagles

played as if they were jinxed. Sheridan helped the “jinx” stay alive, as

did seniors Steven Thomas and Ricardo Luna. Then there was Solis, of

course.

“When he takes somebody on, there’s nobody that can stop him,” Day

said of Solis. “He has just leap-frogged from where he was last year. He

has the skills and the speed to take over a game.”

The Mustangs and Eagles battled to a scoreless tie, Feb. 3, 2001, the

last time the two teams met. But Estancia defeated Mesa, 2-0, earlier

last season, before the Mustangs went on to win the school’s first league

title.

“With the crosstown rivalry, (the Mustangs) worry about Estancia more

than any other team,” Day said. “This win, especially now that they

didn’t score on us, is going to boost our morale and hopefully I’ll take

that boost and funnel it so that we can play some better soccer.”

The Mustangs will look to display improvement Friday when they visit

Newport-Mesa District rival Corona del Mar, which is also 2-0-1 in the

PCL. The Sea Kings, however, will be without goalkeeper Geoff Collier and

senior Aldo Bautista after receiving red cards in a 2-0 win over

University Wednesday.