The El Molino Lions boys squad took round one for west county soccer bragging rights on Jan. 14, slipping past arch rival Analy, 2-1 in a surprising upset win. The victory over the Tigers was the first in years for the Lions, making first half goals from Zack Strehlow and Cole Van Stone stand up for the win. Also turning in solid games were Lions defenders Jacob Cibrian and Indigo LaMere and midfielders Ryan Palmer and Jesse Gonzales.
Analy’s score came on an own goal in the second half.
“The boys are playing well, even after some hard defeats,” El Mo coach Dave Rosales said. “As always El Molino boys soccer will battle until the end of the game and to the end of the season.”
At the start of play this week, the Lions (2-3, 4-5-0) and Tigers (2-3, 9-3-1) were tied for fourth place in the NBL Redwood Division. El Mo will host Cardinal Newman on Jan. 24 (6 p.m.) and visit Maria Carrillo on Jan. 29 (6 p.m.), while Analy has home and away matches against Carrillo (Jan. 24, 6 p.m.) and Roseland University Prep (Jan. 29, 7 p.m.).
Ladies battling on pitch
Wins have been hard to come by for both Analy and El Molino girls soccer teams in the early stages of the NBL campaign, with both battling in a well-balanced North Bay League.
The Tigers (1-3, 3-4-2) rebounded from road losses to Montgomery (3-0) and Maria Carrillo (2-0) with a 2-0 win on a muddy field at Ukiah on Jan. 17. Goal scorers for the Tigers were Macee Wacholz (assist Aramara Garcia) and Tatiana Avila.
“Even though the field was tough to play on, we were able to connect passes and create scoring chances,” Tigers’ coach Brian Heacock reported. “It was a good 2-0 away result for us.”
Analy will visit Sonoma Academy on Jan. 28 in a 5 p.m. varsity start.
Meanwhile, the Lions (0-2, 0-6) remain in pursuit of their first win after recent home losses to Rancho Cotate (1-0) and Santa Rosa (7-0).
“We lost to Rancho, 1-0 but it could have easily been the other way around,” El Mo coach Emily Farrant noted. “We will use that momentum this week against Healdsburg and Elsie Allen. The girls are hungry for a win.”
El Mo will hit the road this week for matches at Healdsburg (Jan. 22, 6 p.m.) and Elsie Allen (Jan. 24, 6 p.m.).
