Casa dominates in 1-0 soccer victory

One goal was enough to give the Casa Gramde a win over rival Petaluma in their soccer showdown.|

Casa Grande’s Ramon Lopez scored the go-ahead goal off a crossing pass from Hector Barahona, and the Gauchos defeated crosstown rival Petaluma, 1-0, in their showdown game.

Casa controlled the action on the pitch - most of the match was played on Petaluma’s side of the field and the Gauchos easily out-shot the Trojans - but solid goalie play by Petaluma and some missed shots by the Gauchos kept the score close.

Petaluma’s best shot may have been its last. Alex Sosa Manrique had a chance for the equalizer during the games final moments, but his attempt was batted down by Casa’s Jose Moreno.

Casa Grande moved its record to 2-2, and Petaluma is still looking for its first win at 0-4.

“I think in possession, we did well. Our passing was great,” said Casa Grande head coach Michael Briceno. “We just didn’t finish our chances.”

The Gauchos missed multiple one-on-one scoring opportunities, and another shot was stopped by the crossbar. Lopez, aided by Barahona, finally broke the scoreless tie with 25 minutes left in the game.

Petaluma coach Greg Lamansky said his team played well despite the loss. The Trojans have nine underclassmen on the varsity this season, and six of those young players are in the starting lineup.

“These guys have improved each game,” Lamansky said. “They keep going full speed ahead, and they play hard.”

Goalie Joshua Haugen had a heavy workload and performed well for Petaluma. John Cortez de Leon, David Swanson, Elliot Waters and Sosa Manrique also stood out for the Trojans.

For the victorious Gauchos, Johny Aviles and Jack Guns produced plenty of scoring chances, and Michael Orton showed good defensive form.

Briceno wants his team’s shots to become goals more often.

“We’re probably going to work on a lot of shooting drills, to finish,” Briceno said.

Casa Grande’s last preseason game is at Vintage of Napa, and its North Bay League season began at Rancho Cotate on Tuesday. Casa’s first NBL home game is against Windsor Friday.

The Trojans were to open Sonoma County League play at Piner on Dec 20.

Casa Grande also won the junior varsity contest, 3-1. Omar Flores, Kevin Bran Gonzalez and Elliot Irigoyen Carbajal scored goals for the Gauchos. Miguel Rangel scored late in the match for Petaluma.

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