With the start of the league soccer season just a week away, the
defending SCL co-champion varsity Greyhounds are making their final
push in preparation for what should be an exciting campaign.
Last week the Hounds gained a split in a pair of pre-season
games, as they fell to visiting San Rafael, 3-2 in overtime on
Monday, but bounced back to defeat Ukiah, 4-1 in a Thursday road
clash. The split left Healdsburg with a pre-season record of
3-2-1.
³I think our team is progressing and moving in the right
direction,² said Healdsburg varsity coach Rob Perman. ³We didn¹t
play very well against San Rafael last week, but we moved the ball
really well and played much better against Ukiah.²
On Monday, the Greyhounds got an early goal from Mario Gonzalez
and were locked in a 1-1 dogfight with San Rafael at intermission.
The Greyhounds drew blood again early in the second half when
Ricardo Rivas found the net, putting his team up by a goal. The
Hounds maintained the 2-1 lead until the Bulldogs scored with just
two minutes left in regulation, sending the game into a pair of
10-minute overtime periods. San Rafael broke through for a goal in
overtime to emerge with a 3-2 win.
³It just wasn¹t a very good effort on our part,² said a
disappointed Perman. ³It looked like San Rafael wanted it more than
we did.²
The Hounds got back into the win column at Ukiah on Thursday, as
top scorer Efrain Aguado recorded a hat trick in a 4-1 win over the
host Wildcats. Gonzalez also scored a goal for Healdsburg.
This week, the Hounds will host Montgomery on Sept. 6 (after
press time) before kicking off the Sonoma County League season at
Windsor on Sept. 12. Start times for the JV and varsity games are 5
and 7 p.m.
