With the rain falling and time slipping away in regulation time of a scoreless match, the co-captains for Madison High School’s girls soccer team decided enough was enough.
Hannah Hedley bounced a cross toward the goal, and when the ball eluded El Centro Southwest goalkeeper Jannine Cobian, Samantha Valverde was there for the finishing touch. The winning goal came with less than a minute to play, lifting the Warhawks to 1-0 victory Thursday in the girls Division V championship match at University City High School.
The win gave Madison its first-ever CIF championship in girls soccer.
“It might have gone in without my help, but it wasn’t across the line yet and I was right there to push it in,” said Valverde, a junior midfielder. “I didn’t want to take any chances that it would take a funny hop.”
The top-seeded Warhawks capped their season with a 16-6-1 record after finishing as the runner-up in the City Central League.
“We only had four wins my first year when our seniors were freshmen,” said Madison coach Linette Hedley, whose daughter Hannah is one of the five seniors on the current roster. “We’ve progressed a little each year, and I’ve been blessed with a lot of hard workers.”
The Warhawks reached the final with a 2-0 semifinal victory over No. 4 seed Mar Vista, with Valverde and Lucy Inzuza scoring goals. The Madison defense turned in another shutout in the final, with Inzunza and Kimberly Camara making big plays on defense and freshman goalie Natalia Martinez collecting three saves.
Inzunza, a sophomore midfielder, could be credited with a save after a heads-up play she made just before halftime. Southwest had two late chances in the first half, but a shot from the right side by Isabella Romo drifted into the side of the goal, and Inzunza was in goal to repel an Eagles shot just before the half ended.
“That was a huge play by Lucy before the half,” Linette Hedley said.
Second-seeded Southwest had its season end with a 16-13 record after claiming the Desert League title with an 8-0 record under fourth-year coach Edgar Martinez.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our girls,” Martinez said. “I think the rain may have had something to do with how that goal slipped away.”
The Eagles were also 2-0 winners in the semis over O’Farrell Charter on the strength of two goals scored by Romo, a junior forward. The Southwest squad survived a 4½-hour drive from El Centro to San Diego, bying Interstate 8 through the mountains and going around through Riverside for a long detour.
“We got some hail going through Moreno Valley, so we opened the windows and let the girls have some fun with that,” Martinez said.
The two teams played to a scoreless tie in the first half before the rain set in. The first Madison corner kick came in sixth minute and led to a shot just over the crossbar, and two minutes later team Valverde was denied when her shot slammed off the crossbar.
The Warhawks controlled possession for most of the half, including a breakaway by Devina Guerrero which was denied by Cobian. Valverde just missed again early in the second half when she found herself open on the left side, but her shot hit the left post and dribbled across the front of the goal without crossing the line.
At the end of the match, however, Valverde was not to be denied.
“This feels so good because of all the work we have done to get here,” Valverde said.
BOYS
Preuss 3, Palo Verde Valley 1: The Preuss School won its first CIF title in boys soccer under longtime coach Vincent Fulchiron with a triumph over Palo Verde Valley in the Division V final at University City.
The top-seeded Tritons (15-5-1) broke away from a 1-1 halftime deadlock with two second-half goals to hand No. 2 seed Palo Verde Valley (16-1-2) its only loss of the season after the Yellow Jackets won the Desert League with a 7-0-1 record.
Preuss, runner-up in the Summit League, took a 2-1 lead 12 minutes into the second half when junior midfielder Angel Lugo drilled a 30-yard laser into the back of the net from the right side, and senior captain Dylan Gomez added insurance when he blasted another long goal five minutes later.
The two teams had battled to a draw in the first half as each team had a goal scored in heavy traffic. Junior midfielder Issachar Cortez connected for Preuss in the ninth minute to give the Tritons an early 1-0 advantage which lasted until junior forward Santos Gomez netted the equalizer in the 35th minute for Palo Verde Valley.
Hoff is a freelance writer.
