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Lady Dawgs place third at Foothill tournament
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Ceres High coach Randy Cerny was fuming after one of his defenders picked up a foul in the closing minutes of a tie game at the Foothill Mustang Kick Off Soccer Tournament on Friday. Lincoln converted the penalty kick, edged Ceres 1-0 and claimed the tournament title on Saturday.

"It was a hometown call," Cerny said.

The loss kept Ceres out of the championship game of the eight-team tournament. The Bulldogs had to settle for third place despite compiling an impressive 3-1 record.

"I truly believe we were the best team up there," Cerny said.

Ceres played four games in the span of two days.

"The girls played fantastic both days," Cerny said.

Ceres forward Lucero Villasenor had seven goals and one assist.

"If they had a MVP of the tournament, she would have been considered," Cerny said.

Villasenor's outstanding play drew praise from a Sacramento City College soccer coach.

"She just plays a smart brand of soccer," Cerny said. "She's fearless."

Consolation championship

Two players scored for Ceres during its 3-0 win over Sacramento Country Day Cavaliers for third place Saturday afternoon.

Villasenor had two goals and an assist. Janet Cortes had one goal. Michelle Guzman and Brittany Randle each had one assist.

The Bulldogs led 1-0 at halftime. Villasenor scored in the 26th minute off of a pass from Guzman.

Ceres scored twice in the span of three minutes in the second half. Cortes put the Bulldogs ahead 2-0 in the 44th minute. Villasenor had the assist. Villasenor scored Ceres' third goal in the 46th minute off an assist from Randle.

Ceres goalie Yessenia Medina had to make just one save.

Ceres 3, Argonaut 0

Ceres defeated Argonaut Saturday morning and earned the right to play for the consolation championship in the afternoon.

"We dominated Argonaut," Cerny said. "I put my reserves in, in the second half."

The Bulldogs led 3-0 at halftime.

Janneli Arreygue scored in the sixth minute. Villasenor scored in the 25th minute. Myrna Cardenas scored in the 25th minute.

"All three goals were assisted by Janet (Cortes)," Cerny said.

Medina made one save.

Lincoln 1, Ceres 0

The Zebras edged the Bulldogs on Friday. Lincoln scored the game-winning goal with eight minutes left in regulation.

"A Lincoln player took a dive in the box and got a penalty kick," Cerny said.

"We got ripped off."

Ceres had nine shots on goal, seven more than Lincoln.

"We were hitting the shots and they weren't going in," Cerny said.

Ceres 4, River City 1

The Bulldogs beat the Raiders in the opening round of the tournament on Friday.

Villasenor scored all four goals. She scored three times during the first 30 minutes of play.

"She had a hat trick in the first half," Cerny said.

Ceres finished the preseason with a 5-2 record.

"Our early success can be attributed to the fact that the Ceres Youth Soccer Organization stepped up and finally formed some competitive teams," Cerny said.

The Bulldogs won just five games the entire 2003 season.

"They're improving with each game," Cerny said.

Ceres starts league play this week. The Bulldogs play host to Turlock, which is one of the top teams in the CCC, tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. - By DALE BUTLER / Staff Reporter of The Ceres (Calif.) Courier