Boys soccer ends undefeated season with frustrating loss

On Wednesday, Feb. 21, fans braved the windy 50 degree weather to cheer on Samo as they faced Desert Mirage High School for the second round of CIF. After an incredible effort, the team’s hopes of advancing were shattered with a 0-1 loss.Desert Mirage has been the CIF champion several times. Their team is first in Samo’s region and is ranked in the top 100 teams in the nation. Samo knew they were going to have to play better than ever before to win the game. Assistant Coach Daniel Hulbert explained the team’s strategy going into the match.“Going into the game we knew we had a physical advantage on them. We really wanted to look to pressure them all the way up the field as well as exploit our height advantage on set pieces,” Hulbert said.From the moment the whistle blew, it seemed like their strategy was working. Samo came out incredibly aggressive and kept the ball in Desert Mirage’s half. They made several chances in the final third, and forward Jaylen Erhahon (’18) even had a near goal off of a corner kick 10 minutes in. For the first 15 minutes, Desert Mirage wasn’t able to maintain possession for more than a few seconds, while Samo controlled every ball. Samo was starting better than they had possibly ever. Now, the team wanted a goal to show for their skill. With 12 minutes to go, Samo had two back-to-back opportunities to score. Just a minute later, Erhahon received a cross from left field and blasted it into the empty net. However, he was positioned offsides, so the goal did not count. Now with time running out in the first half, Samo was eager to get a goal, especially considering how well they were playing. Samo maintained control of the ball and created several chances, but were unable to capitalize. By the end of the first half, the game stayed tied 0-0. After having such an energetic first half, the team was a little disappointed for not capitalizing. Goalkeeper Nate Comay (’19) attested to this and gave his thoughts on the first forty minutes of play.“We dominated the first half and completely controlled the game. Unfortunately, we were unable to put the ball in the back of the net,” Comay said.After halftime, both teams came out with even more ferocity than before. Samo had a beautiful drive less than five minutes in, but it was stopped by Desert Mirage. Less than a minute later, Samo got another shot but it missed wide. Minutes later, Owen Koetters (’18) took a free kick right outside the box, but their goalie made a nice save to block it. 12 minutes in, Koetters lobbed another free kick, which was headered just wide of the right goal post. Samo was still commanding the game, but a team as skillful as Desert Mirage only needed one chance to put the ball away. About 20 minutes in, Desert Mirage made a drive down field and took a shot. The ball bounced off the referee who was positioned next to the goal and ricocheted in. Despite an uproar from Samo players and fans, the goal was counted and Samo was now trailing 0-1.After this controversial goal, Samo started to become on edge. Hostility increased between both teams and fouls piled up. Samo seemed a little defeated and struggled to attack.With 10 minutes to go, Samo had a close header but it went just above the goalpost. They then got a corner but it was batted out. The other team countered and had an open goal, but Samo’s defensive line made a nice run back to stop the goal.As every second ticked away, the team became more frantic to try to tie the game. Desert Mirage was aware that the game was coming to a close, so they tried to run out the clock and waste time. Samo started to seem too frantic and weren’t controlling the ball.With less than two minutes to go Erhahon made a drive down left wing and almost scored. Samo got s corner kick and had almost another goal but the goalie made a great save. Now Samo was driving with full force as fast as they could to try to score and send the game into overtime. Goalkeeper Max Nemoy (’20) explained the intensity of the last five minutes of the game.“The last minutes of the game were the most intense minutes I have ever been apart of. We had so many opportunities to score and wanted it so badly,” Nemoy said.However, there just wasn’t enough time left, and Samo ended the match with a 0-1 loss.Following the game, Samo graciously shook the other team’s hands and thanked the spectators. However, their hearts were heavy with such a heartbreaking loss.“Losing was terrible, especially when we dominated the game. The ref and other circumstances out of our control led to this loss. It is unfortunate because we played very well and had an amazing season,” Nemoy said.Despite the unfavorable outcome, varsity players held their head high knowing that they had a breakthrough season. They will take the offseason to improve their game even further and seek redemption next season.