Girls’ Soccer: Oilers one win away
FRESNO — The Huntington Beach High girls’ soccer team had to make a 264-mile trek to Fresno on Thursday, but at least the Oilers did so in style.
They had a decked-out party bus, complete with tinted windows, speakers on the inside walls and neon lighting. As it turns out, it was not surprisingly a popular choice for the group of teenage girls.
“It was a lot of fun,” Huntington Beach junior defender Brianna Barnes said. “I feel like we just bonded as a team for five hours. It definitely got us ready and pumped up for the game.”
The second half of the CIF Southern California Regional Division I semifinal game at Fresno Bullard? That was a lot of fun, too.
The No. 8-seeded Oilers erupted for five goals after the intermission on their way to a 6-0 triumph over No. 4-seeded Bullard. Huntington Beach ensured its historic season would continue, as it is one win away from its first regional title.
The Oilers (20-8-7) will play at top-seeded JSerra in the Division I title match on Saturday at 3 p.m. JSerra routed Granada Hills Charter, 5-1, in the other semifinal game.
The game against JSerra gives Huntington Beach a rematch of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 semifinals last week, which the Lions won, 2-1, on their way to the Southern Section Division 1 crown.
“It’s revenge time,” Oilers senior center back Katie Martinez said with a smile after Thursday night’s victory. “And the good thing is, we’ve already played them once. We kind of know their style, so we can adjust better than the first game.”
The Oilers earned the chance for a rematch with a dominant effort against Bullard (17-8-2), the CIF Central Section Division 1 champion. They showed their depth. Six different players scored, with Barnes, sophomore Alex Lotter, freshman Makenna McGill, freshman Summer Stewart, sophomore Alyssa Hornback and junior Remi Davison all finding the back of the net.
Bullard came out strong in the opening minutes, with the Oilers a bit tentative playing on a grass field for the first time in a while.
“We’re so used to turf,” Martinez said. “We made a couple of mistakes and our movement was a bit slow, but I think in the end, we still came out strong.”
As the half went on, Coach Raul Ruiz’s Oilers started dominating possession against the host Knights. It paid off after freshman Xolani Hodel’s long throw-in was deflected over the end line in the 29th minute, earning Huntington Beach its first corner kick of the match.
Barnes headed in Anna Carleton’s corner from the left side at the far post, and Huntington Beach went into the intermission with a 1-0 advantage.
“The last header [goal] I got was against Long Beach Poly [Dec. 14 in the Mater Dei tournament],” Barnes said. “Every game, I feel like I envision, ‘Oh, I’m going to make it this game,’ so I was really excited to get one this game. I definitely thought it was one that counted.”
The Oilers doubled their lead early in the second half. In the 42nd minute, senior goalkeeper Rachel Harris (four saves) had a free kick from about 40 yards out. The ball bounced around in the box before Lotter stuck it past Bullard keeper Samantha Goodrich.
After that, it seemed like the floodgates opened. Hodel assisted the next goal in the 48th minute, playing the ball up to her fellow freshman McGill. She split two defenders in the box and scored.
Six minutes later, it was Stewart scoring her third goal in two games. After a deep throw-in by Hodel, sophomore Jenna Nighswonger volleyed the ball back toward the goal from the top of the box. Stewart stayed hot, putting it in.
“It’s been an incredible freshman class,” Ruiz said. “The key is to give them that confidence, give them that playing time that they deserve. As time went on, right now we’re seeing the fruits of that.”
McGill assisted Hornback’s goal in the 69th minute, and Davison completed the scoring in the 77th minute on a pass from Alijah Oliver. The ball hit the crossbar and went down and in, setting off a celebration on the Huntington Beach bench.
“Remy, in the beginning she didn’t get a lot of playing time, and she’s definitely been a player who has worked her way up to playing the full game,” Barnes said. “We were really happy for her.”
Senior captain Alexis Macias earned a couple of corner kicks in the second half for Bullard, but none of them really materialized. Huntington Beach’s defense of goalkeeper Harris, along with Martinez, Barnes, Oliver, Bianca Maccabi and Kekoa Nelson, was able to earn its second straight shutout.
JSerra, and sophomore forward Isabella D’Aquila, will be a different beast. But the Oilers, who opened the regional with a 3-0 upset win at top-seeded Torrey Pines on Tuesday, look forward to the opportunity.
“It’s exciting to get a second chance,” Barnes said. “Especially against JSerra.”
Let the party continue.
Twitter: @mjszabo
