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Bells defeat VC 1-0, 1/4
Valley Christian 0, Bellarmine College Prep 1
The Valley Christian
boys varsity soccer team traveled to Bellarmine to play a very tough
game against the perennial WCAL Champions. The weather threatened
rain, but God kept the storm at bay long enough to allow the game.
The Warriors have
never defeated or tied the Bellarmine Bells in school soccer history.
The Bells who entered the game ranked in the top 20 in the country,
returned recently from a trip to Irvine where they advanced to the
semi-finals of a prestigious high school tournament.
The game started off
in heartbreaking fashion. In the 9th minute, the Bells got a corner
kick. The trailing forward was able to nod home a close range header
past the diving Ben Hansen to take a 1-0
lead.
After the goal, the
Warriors threatened several times. In the 15th minute,
Jeff Coggan took an
Austin Keeling pass and deftly heeled it
back to Andrew Smith who fired on target.
The Bells keeper was up to the task and deflected the shot just wide.
Ten minutes later,
Warriors forward Joey Stryker shot a
diving header just wide after beating the Bells keeper.
The game was evenly
played, but the Warriors could not find the net for the equalizer. The
VC defense shined again behind star senior defender
Garrett Ruiz. Ruiz was electrifying as he
shut down the opposing forwards and distributed out the back. Along with
Ruiz, Ryan Corry and
Chris McElhatton turned in
stellar performances, and Hansen was barely tested.
Major League Soccer
star and US National Team Goalie,
Joe Cannon was in attendance and commented after the game on Ruiz.
"That kid is fast, clearly the best player on the field today. I
was very impressed."
After the game, VC
assistant coach John Basanese
shared his thoughts on the game. "You know, we ask a lot of these kids.
I'm very proud of the way they responded today. Nobody likes to
lose, but I saw some kids step it up in this game. We asked for
them to give us everything, and that's what they did. When the
kids you care for so much give you that kind of effort, it's difficult
to even be disappointed."
Regarding the rest of
the season, Basanese said. "We'll be ok, this was a very tough, well
coached team we played today. Our kids have what it takes to make
CCS and we are setting our sights on nothing less. We just have to
go get ready for a tough Serra team this weekend."
The road will not be
easy, every game is a must win from here until the end of the season. A
tough game vs. the Serra Padres awaits on Saturday, followed by upstart
Riordan. Keep checking vcsoccer.com for updates.
vcsoccer.com man of the match: Garrett Ruiz
| Valley Christian |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Bellarmine |
1 |
0 |
1 |
VC Starting Lineup: Hansen, Corry, Ruiz, McElhatton,
Nettemeyer, Bales, Stryker, Osuna, Keeling, Coggan, Smith
Weather: Overcast 55 degrees |
