Rams Win Over Oaks Christian

Last evening, your Cate Rams traveled south on the 101 to face a tough opponent in a non-league match against powerhouse Oaks Christian Lions. After getting stuck in traffic, the Rams had to shorten their pregame warmup and prepare for the much-anticipated match.

Our starting eleven was as follows: Sophomore Goalkeeper Alejandro Sandoval at goal. The defensive 4 was led by Senior Charlie Dorion, juniors Teke Meisel and Nolan Montoya, and Sophomore Nicolas Wright De la Cal.

The midfield trio of Seniors Quincy Thorne, Dimash Anuarbek, and freshman Alden Rosenfield. The attacking trio was led by Junior Miles Thompson, and Seniors George Marin and Kiy Barry.

This was another opponent that we were facing for the first time. Both teams came out aggressively in an effort to establish the tone and control the game’s tempo. The first 10 minutes were a back-and-forth battle, but we gradually took control of the game with our excellent passing and possession. In the 15th minute, George received an amazing through ball that split the Lions’ defense and broke away. The opposing defender resorted to pulling his shirt for about 10 yards in order to slow him down, and we were awarded a PK. George stepped up and calmly deposited the ball in the left lower corner to give us a 1-0 lead. With momentum on our side, we pressed forward in search of a second goal. Two minutes later, George sent a cross into the opponent’s 6-yard box that Quincy connected on and converted his chance to double our lead. The Lions attempted to get on the scoreboard and cut our lead, so they pressed forward. This strategy opened up spaces that gave us several more scoring chances. In the 30th minute, Charlie saw his childhood friend (Kiy Barry) calling for the ball on the right wing, and he launched a 40-yard bomb that Kiy caught in stride and left the Lion defenders off guard, Kiy was face to face with the Lion goalie and he tucked the ball away in the left bottom corner of the goal to make it 3-0 in our favor. In the final minute of the half, the host team converted a goal to make it 3-1 Cate at the half.

We knew that in the second half, the Lions would come out aggressively and attempt to get back in the game. Your Rams were prepared and played a solid team defense. Oaks Christian created several chances, but we dealt with them to maintain our lead. In the 75th minute, the Lions cut into our lead when they collected a loose ball in the small area to make it a 3-2 game. The last 5 minutes were intense as they threw numbers up in search of the equalizer. However, the experience and leadership of our seniors, combined with the talent of our underclassmen, helped us hold on to our lead and earn a much-deserved 3-2 win on the road against a tough opponent

We are very proud of the effort our young men put out today. The first half was by far the best soccer we’ve played this young season. We showed our technical ability, patience, composure, and were clinical. In the second half, we weren’t as crisp with our passing and possession, but we played team defense and showed plenty of grit to secure a solid victory. We are slowly getting healthy and starting to click as a team.

We have another tough road matchup tonight when we travel to Fillmore for another non-league match @ 6 pm at Fillmore HS.