LODI SOCCER OPENS LEAGUE WITH WIN
Seven minutes provided excitement for the Lodi High boys soccer team against Tracy in Thursday’s Tri-City Athletic League opener at the Grape Bowl.
In a game that was knotted 0-0 at halftime, both teams combined to score five goals in the second half. But Tracy sniffed out a 3-2 win over Lodi (0-1 in the TCAL, 2-4).
With four minutes remaining in the game, Tracy led 3-1. That’s when Lodi midfielder Tyler McBee, off a steal, shuffled the ball to the front of Bulldogs’ box. McBee, quickly looking for a place in the plant the ball into the cage, opted for the middle of the net to cut Tracy’s lead to the final score.
“We started playing better when the score was 2-0,” said Lodi coach Dave Clemons. “We started playing faster from the midfield, we started making better passes. Up until then, it’s like we were stuck. That was the difference.”
One minute remained in the contest when Lodi midfielder Adrian Vargas almost tied the game when he sailed a 35-yard line drive toward the Bulldogs’ net. But the ball was hauled in by Tracy goalie Daniel Monarrez, who leaped to the top of the net for the grab, and booted the ball back to the midfield. Both teams exchanged possessions before time ran out on the Flames’ chance to end the game in a tie.
Tracy (1-0 in the TCAL, 6-1-1) jumped out to a 2-0 lead within the first six minutes of the second half. In the 41st minute, the Bulldogs’ Israel Olivares was all alone in the box to register the first goal.
Then at the 46th minute, on an attempted penalty kick by Jesus Flores, Lodi goalie Hugo Solis blocked Flores’ attempt. But another Tracy player kicked the ball out of Solis’ hands, which led to the loose ball being launched into the back of the net by Tracy’s Israel Olivares for a 2-0 advantage.
Lodi recorded its first goal 20 minutes later. A ball that a Tracy player meant for a teammate. But the ball winded up in front of the Flames’ Luis Sandoval, who took the open shot and fired into the opposite corner of the net for a 2-1 score.
At the 73rd minute, Flores had another shot at the net. This time he made it after he and Lodi players battled for control of the ball as they headed toward the front of the box. That led to a 3-1 score before the Flames’ rally late in the second half.
Lodi had only five shots on goal in the game.