Valley, Beauregard split soccer matches
BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
VALLEY — On senior night at Ram Stadium, the Valley High School and Beauregard High School soccer teams split a critical 5A Area 7 doubleheader on March 19.
Elizabeth Gonzalez led the Lady Hornets (3-7-1, 2-0) to a 3-1 victory over the Lady Rams (2-4, 0-3) with a goal and an assist, and freshman forward Jose Diaz’s last-minute penalty kick sealed a 1-0 victory for the Rams (3-4-1, 1-2) over the Hornets (6-6, 1-1). After putting together a special evening of festivities to celebrate the departing seniors, it was a bittersweet moment for VHS girls’ head coach Eberne Myrthil. Despite the loss, he said it was rewarding to celebrate a “special” group of girls who fought until the final whistle.
“Seeing them grow from when I took over the team to where we are now, I’m so proud of all of them even though we didn’t get the outcome we wanted tonight,” Myrthil said. “It speaks volumes having them all on the field together and seeing how they push each other and never give up. I coach them hard, and the fact that they’re okay with that and accept it shows their character and the young ladies they’ll become.”
VHS drew first blood almost 11 minutes into the match after their corner kick bounced past BHS’s first line of defenders and hit a Lady Hornet’s hands. After the referees awarded a penalty for a handball, Gracie Llorens coolly slotted the ball just to the goalkeeper’s left and put the Lady Rams up 1-0.
That lead lasted only just over a minute as Gonzalez took possession of an unsuccessful VHS clearance and launched a 22-yard shot that slightly deflected off a Lady Ram and wrongfooted the goalkeeper. With the game tied at 1-1, Jackie Lugo fired the Lady Hornets into a 2-1 lead with 14:17 left before halftime after finding the ball in the box and placing it near the top left corner with a gorgeous half-volley.
Near the conclusion of a tough, physical second half, Alleria Dupree put the game out of reach with 7:31 left to play after Gonzalez dished her a low cross across the face of the goal for a point- blank, tap-in shot.
In the nightcap, the Rams found themselves under immense pressure for most of the first half before making a string of dangerous second-half scoring opportunities count. For VHS boys’ head coach William Elliot, the evening couldn’t have played out any better after recognizing his seniors’ achievements.
“Man, this feels awesome. It’s the best feeling ever to come out here and get a win, especially on senior night and against an area team,” Elliot said. “The last time we played them, we lost 4-1. Today, we showedmore confidence and were more deliberate, in my opinion. And it felt like we were more loose, more excited to be here.”
On a night that honored the seniors, it was a freshman forward who stepped up for the Rams in the game’s biggest moment. Described as “constant” by Elliot, Diaz calmly approached the spot and nailed the penalty before falling to his knees and stretching his arms toward the sky.
“I don’t have the words to describe it. I knew I needed to score and help my team,” Diaz said. “It feels really good because we lost the last game and tried hard. But in this game, we tried even harder. We’re going to keep working to win more games and qualify for the playoffs.”
For lengthy stretches of the first half, BHS generally had more possession of the ball and created the better scoring opportunities, while VHS fought to prevent easy looks on target.
After halftime, it was the Rams who created the better chances by playing the ball up the wings and looking to cut the ball back to a trailing forward in the box.
The opportunity then presented itself after a Hornet took Santiago Diaz down in the box, prompting the referee to award VHS a penalty with 7:23 left in the match. From there, Jose Diaz wrongfooted the Hornets’ goalkeeper and thumped the ball inside the right post.
A furious BHS comeback attempt then fell just short in the final minutes.
