Ceres High’s varsity girls soccer program dominated Pacheco and Hughson by a combined score of 30-2 this past week.
“Everyone played and the opportunities to score came,” said Danny Barragan, new head coach for the Bulldogs. “I’m proud of the wins. But I don’t feel too good about it (the large goal differential).”
Ceres High set a program-record for goals in a single game when it routed Pacheco 18-1 in Western Athletic Conference play on Dec. 11 at CUSD Stadium.
The Bulldogs led 9-1 at halftime. “As soon as we scored seven goals, I told the girls to touch the ball more as a team,” Barragan said. “There’s only so much control I can have on the field.”
Jackie Ruiz led the Bulldogs with a career-high eight goals.
Miranda Larranaga tallied a career-high seven goals and two assists.
Kalyani Hermosillo had one goal and two assists.
Aaliyah Ruiz and Ariannah Martinez both had one goal and one assist.
Ceres High cruised to a 12-1 win over visiting Hughson in non-conference play on Dec. 9.
Jackie Ruiz collected five goals and one assist.
Larranaga had two goals and two assists.
Hermosillo had one goal and one assist.
Martinez, Kristina Corbin, Liesha Jimenez and Ashley Mercado all scored once.
Aaliyah had two assists.
Siriana Gudino tallied one save at goalkeeper.
The Bulldogs moved to 5-0-0 on the year and 1-0-0 in the WAC standings.
Hawks secure split
Central Valley’s varsity girls soccer team won one of two games during the opening week of the Central California Conference season.
The Hawks competed with a revamped lineup.
“We lost a lot of seniors,” said head coach Miguel Larranaga, who led the Hawks to one CCC title and three Western Athletic Conference championships in a four-year span from 2015-18. “We’re rebuilding the program.”
The Hawks opened CCC play with a 3-2 win over Patterson on Dec. 10 at CUSD Stadium.
“It wasn’t an easy game,” Larranaga said.
Citlaly Salinas scored twice for Central Valley, including the winning goal with less than 10 minutes to play.
Salinas started on defense the past three years.
“This is her first time playing forward,” Larranaga said. “She’s doing a pretty good job.”
Yaira Contreras added one goal and two assists.
Jasmine Magana collected one assist.
Goalkeepers Yukari Mendoza and Vivian Reyes both tallied one save.
The Tigers challenged the Hawks after falling behind 2-0 in the opening half.
Central Valley dropped to 5-4 overall and 1-1 in the conference standings following Thursday’s 1-0 setback at Atwater. “We should have won,” Larranaga said. “We created good opportunities. We couldn’t put one in.”
BOYS SOCCER
Central Valley’s varsity boys soccer program has won eight straight games since opening the 2019-20 season with back-to-back losses.
“The results look good,” Hawks’ head coach Omar Leon said. “We still need to improve as a team.”
Central Valley improved to 2-0 in the Central California Conference standings with a 3-0 win over Atwater Thursday evening in Ceres.
“They were a lot better than last year,” Leon said. “They were more physical and aggressive.”
Jesus Yepez accounted for all three of the Hawks’ goal.
Alexys Jimenez and Agustin Gutierrez both tallied one assist.
Goalkeeper Erick Martinez totaled four saves.
Central Valley edged Patterson 1-0 on Dec. 10 at Patterson Community Stadium.
“Patterson has a very strong team,” Leon said. “If they would have beat us, I wouldn’t have been surprised.”
Isaac Juarez scored the game’s lone goal.
Sebastian Castillo dished out the assist.
Martinez had five saves.
“The more games we play, the better the team looks,” Leon said.
Bulldogs 2, Spartans 0
It didn’t take long for Gilbert Zamora to earn his first career victory in league play as new head coach of Ceres High’s varsity boys soccer program.
The Bulldogs opened the Western Athletic Conference season with a 2-0 win at Lathrop on Friday.
Ceres High improved to 4-3-0 overall and 1-0-0 in the WAC standings.
“They were a little more focused because it was a league game,” Zamora said.
Bulldog Victor Hurtado tallied one goal and one assist versus the Spartans.
Emilio Padilla had one goal.
Andres Madriz chipped in with one assist.
Ceres High goalkeeper Porfirio Rodriguez made two saves.
Ceres High and Lathrop battled to a scoreless tie in the opening half.
Hurtado accounted for the winning goal.
“We were patient,” Zamora said. “We didn’t change our game plan. We moved the ball around. We dominated possession.”
