SHP rally derailed by Campo

When Juliana Rosen punched home the game-tying goal with little more 10 minutes left in regulation, it capped a furious rally by the Gators.

But their hopes were dashed minutes later as the seventh-seeded Campolindo converted on a free kick with four minutes left to pull out a 3-2 win over the second-seeded Gators in the first round of the Northern California Division IV tournament.

“The way we’ve been practicing and playing, we got the girls believing they can play with anyone,” said SHP head coach Ramiro Arredondo, who guided the Gators to the Central Coast Section Division IV title with a 2-1 win over Woodside Priory Saturday.

“For 59 minutes, we proved we could play with (Campo). But we couldn’t put a full 80 (minutes) together [Tuesday].”

Down two goals, SHP (12-6-6) came out flying to start the second half. Caitlin Carcione let loose a shot from 25 yards out almost immediately off the second-half kickoff that sailed over the goal and, a couple minutes later, had another foray into the Campo penalty box.

“We moved three forwards up top. The second half, we created early opportunities,” Arredondo said. “We felt if we got an early goal, we had a fighting chance.”

In the 48th minute, Rosen won a 50-50 challenge at the top of the penalty, with her shot going just wide. Rosen got off another weak shot a minute later before Megan Tinsley curled a shot on goal that bent right into the goalkeeper’s hands in the 50th minute.

The game changed a minute later when Carcione and Campo freshman goalkeeper Anna Solomon collided in the middle penalty box, with Carcione’s toe poke rolling just wide.

Solomon, however, had to be carted off, with Mallory Louis being inserted into the game.

After few more failed chances, SHP was back in the game. Campo failed to adequately clear away a Gators’ opportunity. SHP regained possession and a cross was sent into the penalty box where Carcione banged it off the crossbar.

But Sasha Bellack was there to clean up the rebound, hitting the ball on the bounce and depositing it in the back of the net in the 59th minute to cut the Campo lead to 2-1 with a little over 20 minutes left in regulation.

With the Cougars on their heels, the Gators kept up the offensive pressure. Center fullback Lilly Lynch headed a ball over the top of the goal off a corner kick a couple minutes later and Tinsley had a cross cut across the face of the Campo goal, with no one able to get on the end of it.

In the 69th minute, the Gators found the equalizer. Moments after a Carcione shot caromed off the post, Tinsley collected the ball on the left side of the Campo penalty box and sent a cross to the front of the goal. A SHP attacker missed on her redirect chance and a Campo defender fanned on her attempt to clear. The ball bounced right into the path of a crashing Rosen, who split a pair of Cougar defenders and poked it into the back of the net to tie the game at 2-all.

But SHP’s dream comeback turned into a nightmare five minutes later when Campo was awarded a free kick just past the midfield stripe. Devon Ortman sent a long cross into the middle of the SHP penalty box where she found the head of freshman Ella Colombini, who headed the ball home for what became the game-winning strike.

“Out of position again (defensively),” Arredondo said.

Campolindo (14-5-3), which lost to rival Miramonte in the North Coast Section Division II championship game, controlled the first 40 minutes as it took about 20 minutes for SHP to adjust to the Cougars’ size and speed.

By the time the Gators did, Campo held a 1-0 lead as Ella Colombini set up twin sister Mia Colombini for the game’s first goal in the 12th minute.

“First half, we came out a little slow,” Arredondo said. “It took us about 15 minutes to adjust.”

Arredondo made one more adjust in the midfield and before the Gators could settle in, Campo took advantage with its second goal as Kendall Runckel converted a Mia Colombini pass for a 2-0 lead in the 23rd minute.

SHP finally seemed to get fully comfortable with about 10 minutes left in the first half, as the Gators got a corner and throw-in deep in the Cougars end before the halftime whistle.

The Gators then carried that late momentum into the second half.

“In the locker room, everything was positive (at halftime),” Arredondo said. “If we were going to go out, we went out the way we wanted. I can’t fault them for their effort.”

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