Following back-to-back Foothill League wins over Canyon and Valencia, the Hart Hawks hosted the Santa Paula Cardinals in a non-league match and trailed 2-1 at halftime.
By the final whistle, the Hawks won after forward Roman Snow snagged the game winning goal in the final minutes to win 3-2.
“I’m proud of the boys to stay in the game. They were going through a lot and being able to stay in the game shows a lot about them,” said Hart head coach Alex Bernal.
In the first half, the Cardinals (4-3, 2-0) and Hawks (3-0, 2-0) battled back and forth with Hart’s offense dominating possession while attempting multiple shots on goal.
But in the 18th minute, Santa Paula’s offense snuck a goal past Benjamin Rochlen following an error from the senior goalkeeper. And in the eighth minute, the Cardinals netted another goal and led 2-0.
Snow was able to score a late goal in the first half’s final seconds after the Cardinal’s goalkeeper made a save but wasn’t able to get control of the ball which led to the Hawks’ senior forward kicking cutting Santa Paula’s deficit.
After the match, Bernal spoke about the team’s mindset at halftime and added that in soccer, teams can make mistakes, and that he wanted to see his team battle back after trailing.
“Minimize the mistakes, in soccer, you make too many mistakes and those turn into goals which makes it very hard to win,” he said. “So, minimize those and then just make the most of the opportunities we have in front of the goal.”
In the opening minutes of the second half, the Hawks were awarded a penalty following a handball from a Cardinals defender in the box. And a few moments later, Diego Chavez tied the game at two apiece after successfully convertingthe penalty.
The game remained tied heading into the final minutes of the game after both teams traded long periods of possessions and shots.
With 10 minutes left, Bernal subsisted off Snow in an attempt to give his senior forward a breather, as he then brought him back into the match with four minutes left.
The strategy worked for Bernal as Snow scored the game winning goal past the Cardinals’ goalkeeper following an assist from the midfield and secured the comeback.
Bernal spoke on the Snow’s management late in the match and stated all he wanted was 100% effort from him and his team in the final stages.
“It took the whole team effort,” he said. “Snow came in and people probably didn’t think it’s, very few minutes left in the game, doesn’t matter, but he came in and made an impact, and that’s what we asked from them.”
With the win, the Hawks remain unbeaten in the season and carry their winning streak onto Thursday’s night Foothill League match at home against Golden Valley that Bernal has high hopes for following the comeback win.
“The win shows that the work we’re doing does work, but I still think there’s a lot of improvement to do,” he said. “So, we just got to keep that in mind.”
Photos from Hart boys’ soccer win over Santa Paula:
