Casa Grande defeats Las Lomas in soccer semifinals

Casa Grande’s self-dubbed “revenge tour” claimed another casualty Tuesday night.

On a cold and windy night in Petaluma, the Gauchos blanked Las Lomas 3-0 in the semifinals of the North Coast Section Division 2 playoffs thanks to two goals from Natalia Young and a couple game-changing saves from goalkeeper Abby Harvey, exacting revenge on the team that ended their season at this same stage last year.

The win puts the fourth-seeded Gauchos (14-3-3) into an NCS championship game for the first time since 2010, the last time they won a section pennant (playing during the fall season). They’ll play at No. 3 seed Maria Carrillo (12-4-7) for the Division 2 winter title at 7 p.m. Friday.

“It’s just a special group of girls,” Harvey said. “We have such a special thing that not a lot of teams have. … When people say teams are like families, this team is more of a family than I can imagine. I have so much confidence in these girls.

“This is our year.”

The Gauchos’ “revenge tour” began earlier this season after consecutive ties during league play to Sonoma Valley and Vintage, results they considered upsets and vowed to correct moving forward. They’ve followed up on that promise in a big way. Entering Tuesday’s semifinal, Casa had outscored teams 35-3 over an eight-game winning streak since those ties in late January.

The Las Lomas (11-9-2) matchup only carried added motivation since the Knights ended Casa Grande’s season 3-1 in the NCS semifinals last year.

For most of the first half, it appeared as if that result would repeat itself. Las Lomas controlled possession and tempo of the game for a majority of the opening 40 minutes. They outshot the Gauchos 6-0 from the 10th to the 30th minute, with several looks hitting off the crossbar or slipping just wide past the left and right post.

“If we keep playing back and scared a goal is coming,” Casa Grande head coach Vinnie Cortezzo yelled from the sideline.

But the early script was flipped on its head just before the half. Las Lomas was awarded a penalty kick in the 37th minute and looked to deliver a potential haymaker. It could have been an early gut punch for a Gauchos team still trying to find its footing in the game, if not for the efforts of Harvey.

Using a technique she picked up from watching Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa during the World Cup, Harvey blocked the penalty kick and then followed by blocking the rebound shot from point-blank range. Once the ball was cleared, her teammates mobbed her in celebration.

“I took one slight step to one side before she kicked and then you’re hoping she sees you go that way,” Harvey said of the save. “I showed that side and then I knew with it being a PK it would be live right after, so I just had to go after it again.”

The save paid immediate dividends. Moments later in stoppage time, Young found herself in the right place at the right time near Las Lomas’ goal and lofted a header into the far net, giving the Gauchos a 1-0 lead and all the momentum going into halftime.

“I didn’t think it was going to go in, just because it wasn’t super hard, but it was just good placement, hit the ball on the right side of my head and it was perfect,” Young said.

She converted again in the 68th minute on a 40-yard strike that put the game on ice. That score came minutes after freshman Bailey Guerrero, the Gauchos’ leading scorer, added a goal in the 60th minute to give her team some needed cushion midway through the half.

“I think the game changed on the PK save and the rebound save,” Cortezzo said. “We go to the other end and score right before half and all the momentum swung to our favor.”

He continued: “I felt they outplayed us in the first half, but in the second half I thought we grew into the game and we were much better, played in their half a lot more, and I thought all of our goals were quality. I’m really proud of this group; they’ve worked and grown throughout the year.”

Since its last NCS title in 2010, Casa Grande has reached the semifinals of the section playoffs five times but has yet to play in another championship game. That will all change Friday night in Santa Rosa.

“It’s awesome to go this far, especially it being my senior year and being on varsity since my freshman year,” Young said. “It’s just crazy we’ve never gone this far since I’ve been on the team.”

You can reach Press Democrat Staff Writer Gus Morris at 707-304-9372 or gus.morris@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @JustGusPD.