Mustangs are streak busters

COSTA MESA — Throughout the day the momentum was building. During class and in the Costa Mesa High halls in-between. The boys’ soccer team anticipated what was coming after the final bell rang.

It was time to feast on Eagle. Costa Mesa broke a six-year drought to cross-town rival Estancia with a 2-1 victory spurred by junior Steve Estrada’s tie-breaking goal with six minutes remaining Wednesday at Costa Mesa.

Senior midfielder John Zapata, a four-year starter on varsity, had never beaten Estancia, but a close loss, 1-0, earlier in the season to the Orange Coast League-leading Eagles had the team bursting with confidence.

“Everybody was talking about it all day long, it was time to eat some Eagle,” Zapata said. “Lunch, breakfast, all day. We were pumped. Everybody was passing. Everybody was communicating. We beat them. After the game we were telling each other ‘Nice game.’ Everybody played good.”

With Estancia (5-1 in league) and the Mustangs (2-4 in league) due to face each other again, in what will now be the rubber match, Wednesday was not the Costa Mesa seniors’ final opportunity to break the streak, but they didn’t think of waiting.

“We were thinking about the next generation,” Zapata said. “We were so excited.”

The loss was the first for Estancia this season in league play and for Eagles Coach Gannon Burks it was the first time in his three years coaching at Estancia that he lost to the Mustangs.

“It was bad from the get-go with players late to the bus,” Burks said. “It’s just one of those days where you just wish you didn’t get up. We weren’t focused. We didn’t hold our shape on defense. We were very quiet out there. We didn’t communicate well. When you are on the top they are going to want to knock you down. We learned a lesson today that had nothing to do with soccer.”

Burks said, prior to the season, with three league games against each team alterations between matches would be crucial.

“They made good adjustments,” Burks said. “All the credit to Coach [Eugene] Day. All the credit to the Costa Mesa boys.”

The back-and-forth game was nearing a tie, having been knotted at one since the 24th minute when Mesa senior Franco Duarte blasted in the equalizer off a 30-yard free kick.

Estancia had just come away empty-handed after back-to-back opportunities on free kicks near the 18-yard box when the Mustangs counterattacked. Estrada took a pass in the Estancia box, spun and fired a shot into the back of the net past the diving goalie.

“I had to stop the ball and kick it how it came,” Estrada said. “I knew it was going in. I was aiming for the right corner. We wanted to beat them really bad.”

For Day the victory was bittersweet. The win broke a losing streak and made sure Costa Mesa’s seniors would leave with a victory over Estancia under their belts.

But it also demonstrated how the Mustangs’ season could have gone if they played every game like they do against the Eagles, scoring the most points their rivals have surrendered in nearly a month.

“After the game I told them ‘Let it soak in. If we played like this from the beginning, imagine where we’d be.’ And that was it,” Day said. “It is the game, the rivalry we get up for. They understand a little more what it takes to beat Estancia.”

Costa Mesa junior goalie German Briseño made five saves and set up the Mustangs’ attack with booming kicks.

“We wanted to beat them 4-1, at least,” Briseño said. “We did the things we had to. We were really excited. Sometimes though we don’t have our heads in the game. We don’t pay attention.”

With three games remaining, Costa Mesa still has an opportunity to take one of the two CIF playoff spots the Orange Coast League offers.

The Eagles remained in first place.

“I’d rather win the war than the battle,” Burks said.

Estancia senior goalie Daniel Calderon made six saves.

In the first meeting, the Mustangs lost off a goal Estancia scored under two minutes into the game. Four minutes in Wednesday sophomore George Olivas scored on a header in the box for a 1-0 lead.

This time, the Mustangs came back.