By Christopher Gutierrez,
Staff Writer.
On Nov. 15, 2024, the Santa Rosa High School men’s varsity soccer team played a scrimmage against Cloverdale High School. This game was highly anticipated as both teams wanted to start the season on the right foot with a win.
Cloverdale got the first goal early in the game. There was some controversy with the goal as Cloverdale claimed the ball went through a hole in the net, and while the Santa Rosa players claimed there was no hole, the referee called it a goal. However, the Panthers kept their head up and shortly were able to keep the game even with some easy finishes.
After the first 45 minutes, the game seemed even, but as soon as the second half of the game started, the Panthers’ sophomore Flavio Lopez scored from outside of the 18-yard box off an assist from sophomore Liam Hadley. After the goal was scored, Santa Rosa began to apply more pressure on the opposition’s defense. Thanks to their aggressive tactics, Santa Rosa had several goal-scoring opportunities throughout the match. Despite Santa Rosa not being able to come away with any more goals, the constant pressure also kept Cloverdale scoreless. After 90 minutes, Cloverdale came up short and the Panthers won the game 2-1.
Senior Dylan King, who attended the game, said, “I thought the game was very close at times. It was very intense but fun to see my friends play and watch the crowd cheer the team on.” King said that his favorite moment from the game was “when Santa Rosa scored the second goal because it showed how hard the team worked for the goal.” After the game ended, the players from Santa Rosa shook hands with the referees and Cloverdale players, and just like that the team won their first scrimmage.
The Panthers used this as an opportunity to start the season off right and be prepared for future games. They have two more home games before the North Bay League as of publication, on Dec. 17 against Casa Grande and Jan. 10, 2025 against Maria Carrillo. Make sure to go and support the SRHS men’s soccer team!
