For several local scholastic girls and boys soccer teams last week, the nets were friendly as they advanced in the CIF playoffs. On the girls side, La Jolla Country Day (LJCD) School (11-7-2) topped Horizon School 1-0 in the second round of the CIF Division IV playoffs. With 17 minutes remaining in the game, freshman Ana Cruz, with her back to the goal, beat her defender, turned and fired off a shot from about 25 yards that was all the Lady Torreys needed. Captain Aleena Young had another strong game at center mid, while Erika Shepard had a strong performance at forward and center mid with a couple of great crosses that couldn’t be converted to goals. Sophomore Emily Eibl had a great second half at outside mid, while Allie Hieb anchored the defense again at sweeper as the defense was very stingy, offering virtually no scoring opportunities. LJCD head coach Dave Jenkins also credited the play of defenders Rachel Locke, Jodi Morris, Kelly Mordente and Lily Wolfenzen. LJCD met Francis Parker on March 2 in the semifinals and was eliminated 1-0. Christian and Parker will play for the Division IV crown March 6. The Lady Torreys advanced to the Horizon match with a 6-0 win over Guajome Park Academy, with scores from Shepard (two goals), Eibl, Young, Cruz and Katherine Klicpera. Locke and Alana Pockros shared goalkeeper responsibilities and the shutout. Meantime, The Bishop’s School continued its roll this season, scoring wins over Holtville (6-0) and Foothills Christian (5-0) in the Division IV playoffs. Six Bishop’s players scored in the win over Holtville. Bishop’s, the winner of 20 straight games, met Christian High in the March 2 semifinals and lost, 2-1. In the Division III girls playoffs, La Jolla High used the third seed to beat Clairemont 3-1 in the quarterfinals. La Jolla went up 2-0 after two goals from senior Brianna Chapman. After a fast start, the Lady Vikings gave up a goal close to halftime to go into the break 2-1. Clairemont started with a lot of intensity in the second period, and after weathering the storm for the first five minutes, the rest of the second half was one-sided, according to La Jolla High head coach Kristin Jones. The majority of the game was played in Clairemont’s defensive half. La Jolla was able to seal the game with a late goal off of a corner by sophomore Ellen Latta. With the win, La Jolla advanced to the semifinals on March 2 against Cathedral and shut out the Lady Dons, 2-0. The Lady Vikings will face Coronado for the Division III final at 6:30 p.m. at Valhalla. In boys play last week, Hunter Khaleghi scored a pair of goals as La Jolla Country Day (LJCD) School rolled to a 6-0 win over Horizon in a CIF playoff opener. Lee Klitzner also scored on a direct kick and Ryan French scored his 10th goal off Dennis Roth’s pass. Roth had a great night as he tallied his 20th goal of the season, tapping in a rebound after Alex Fleischhacker’s shot, and then adding his 21st on a strong header off a great cross by Noah Wolfenzon. According to LJCD head coach Jerry Fleischhacker, Klitzner, Philip Poyhonen, Danny Rogers, Max Ferre, Brian Trausch and Alistair Dobke were nearly flawless on defense as they helped Michael Bailey earn his fifth straight shutout. Rodrigo Cuenca also played a strong game at midfield, while Dillon DuBois is returning to form as he had his best game since recently coming back from a long layoff due to an ankle injury, according to Fleischhacker. Elsewhere, The Bishop’s School captured its first two playoff games, with wins over Maranatha Christian (7-0) and Christian High (1-0). In the win over Christian, Zach Negroni scored the winning goal on a corner kick. “It was a hard-fought game with little between the teams, played in very tough conditions,” Bishop’s head coach Malcolm Tovey noted. Bishop’s was to continue its season by attempting to upset CIF champion Mater Dei on Wednesday, March 3 as the Village News went to press.
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