The Hart High and Castaic High girls’ soccer teams saw their seasons end in the CIF Southern Section quarterfinals on Tuesday.
Both teams were shut out on the road after making long trips to the south.
Here’s what each coach had to say about the games:
Hart suffers first loss since early January
The Hart Hawks went out to Orange Lutheran seeking to keep their 11-game winning streak and playoff run alive.
But an early goal in the second half from the Lancers on Tuesday ended both of those. Orange Lutheran freshman Karis Buehler scored in the first minute of the second half.
The last prior loss for Hart came in non-league play Jan. 4 at Liberty High School.
Hart head coach Brett Croft said in a phone interview on Wednesday that his team was actually able to take advantage of the bigger field — Orange Lutheran plays on a soccer-specific field, which is about 15 yards wider and longer than the football fields that high school teams normally play on — and controlled possession. But the Lancers’ direct style of play led to a quick counter for Buehler’s goal.
“It was very back-and-forth in the first half, you know, us handling the ball, them being very direct,” Croft said. “And it was a really good first half, even game. And I think it actually kind of shocked them a little bit.”
With about 25 minutes to play, Croft said he made some adjustments to try to emphasize more offense, and then went all-out in the final 15 minutes, but a goal could not be found.
“At that point in CIF, you have to win or that’s it,” Croft said. “So for me, there really is no difference in losing 1-0 or 3-0. So, we went for it and and, honestly, late, we had a couple chances.”
Hart, the Foothill League champions for the fourth straight season, finished as one of the top 16 teams in all of the Southern Section, an accomplishment that Croft said should be celebrated more with Hart being a public school. The four teams that made the Division 1 semifinals are all private schools.
“You know, unfortunate for us,” Croft said. “We wanted to go farther, and it matches how far we went last year in Division 1. We were hoping to take that one step further, but the group fought to the end. And what a great group of seniors. A majority of them are all going to play in college, which is cool.”
Castaic’s best season in young history comes to an end
The Castaic Coyotes went through the first two rounds in Division 2 and came out on top in both games after penalty shootouts.
No shootout was necessary on Tuesday at Mira Costa High School as the Mustangs won, 3-0.
“We had a big chance. We had a lot of injuries but more than injuries, it was like we ran out of gas,” Castaic head coach Jose Leon said in a phone interview on Wednesday. “And when that happens, you just can’t do anything playing against good teams like the one that we played.”
It meant the end of a breakout season for the Coyotes, who finished third in the Foothill League, had their first winning season and made the playoffs for the first time in their young history.
Leon credited his eight seniors, four of whom had played for him at the club level before he coached them in high school, for helping to make the program competitive early on.
“They know my style, and I know the way that they play,” Leon said. “And that was a big, big advantage for us at this point. I’m gonna miss them big-time … Personally, I’m delighted. I think the players who play, I think they deserve it. It’s a big accomplishment, as far as I’m concerned. I’m proud of the girls, I’m proud of the program, and hopefully we can start building from there.”
Leon said it was cool to see the Castaic community rally around the program’s success this year. He is hopeful that not only does the support continue, but also that the high standards that this year’s team set can continue to be met.
“I gotta wait to see how many new players arrive, because eight seniors are leaving,” Leon said. “So now I have to build up from there. I know that we really set up the highest standards now.”
