After dominating competition in their first four games of the season with 3 shut-outs and a 30 to 1 goal for to goals against ratio, head coach Jess Beaman and his 2021 BHHS varsity Bruin soccer team ran into a 3-1 Umpqua Valley Christian Monarch team also boasting a 22 to 1 goals for to goals against ratio with two shut-outs.
It was wet and cold, with a saturated pitch, and both teams used their off-side trap defenses to compact the playing field between the penalty boxes, making the contest about ball control. Accurate passes and clean traps dominated the first half of play as both teams cautiously probed into scoring situations while being sure not to expose their defenses to fast breaks and open shots inside the penalty box.
Late in the first half, the Bruins moved the ball into the Monarch half of the field as the Monarch defense tightened, senior forward Fabian Villa #10 and sophomore #15 Uriel Cortes worked together with quick passes before Cortes put the ball behind the keeper from just inside the box.
With a 1-0 lead the Bruins loosened up and began to take some risks in play development, opening up areas in the middle of the field for the Monarchs to hold onto the ball and work into an open shooting position about 30 yards out from the Bruin goal. A long, high outside shot from beyond the edge of the penalty box got past Bruin senior goalkeeper Juan Hernandez #00 in the upper right hand corner, tying the score with minutes left in the first half of play.
Play after the half was much the same, cautious action from two teams with a lot on the line, not wanting to make a mistake. However, in the second half, the Bruin attack was much more active, with deep penetration on the wings by senior Rylan Bruce #5 and Diego Turner #3 and crossing attacks that required excellent Monarch goalkeeper play to keep the score even.
At the mid-way point of the second half, Bruin forward Rylan Bruce #5 got the ball into the middle to an open Bryan Valdovinos #21 who put it in the back of the net, giving the Bruins a 2-1 lead. Umpqua Valley Christian fought back and pressed the Bruin defense, dumping the ball into the Bruin half of the field and racing the Bruin defenders to the ball. Bruin keeper Juan Hernandez came out of the goal on a Monarch break-away, slide tackled the Monarch forward breaking up the scoring attempt.
Subsequently a controversial penalty was called, awarding the Monarchs a penalty kick. With less than 5:00 minutes left in the contest, the frustrated Bruins frantically attempted to put together an offensive surge to break the tie, but good goal keeping and a little luck kept the ball out of the Monarch net, leaving the game a 2-2 tie at the final whistle.
We talked with head coach Jess Beaman he told us…”This was our first challenge of the year…We had to make some changes to our line-up and adjust to those changes” he said. “But the kids stayed strong, they didn’t give up and I think a tie was a good result given the conditions. I am confident that we will play a more disciplined game when we meet them again in Roseburg at the end of the month.”
The Bruins move on to the 3-1 North Bend Bulldogs at 2:00pm Saturday.
