Falcons swoop in to capture league title with 1-0 win
Palmdale tops Quartz Hill to win Golden League title
PALMDALE — The celebration by the Palmdale boys soccer team began as soon as the final whistle sounded and lasted long after their 1-0 win over Quartz Hill on Thursday night.
The Falcons (11-2-3, 9-2-3) clinched the Golden League championship in the final match of the regular season, finishing unbeaten in the second half of league play.
The celebration included a Gatorade bath for their coach, spilled over into the stands as the players hopped the fence to share the moment with family and friends. The Falcons also picked up their coach, sixth-year Palmdale coach Christian Hernandez, and threw him into the air twice.
“It feels great. It’s an incredible feeling to win it out here with my brothers on the field,” Palmdale junior goalkeeper Jesse Ramos said. “Nothing can compare to a feeling like this.
“It’s a great accomplishment for us here at Palmdale. To bring it back here, it was meant to happen.”
Quartz Hill (10-5-2, 9-3-2) needed to win one match in its final three league games to win their first league title since 2018, but had two ties, against defending league champ Knight and Littlerock, and the loss to Palmdale.
It is the first league championship for Palmdale since 2013. The Falcons finished third last season.
“It feels great,” said Palmdale junior Brian Trujillo, a third-year varsity player. “The emotions got to me. I’m just happy right now, just happy to win. The only chance for my boys.”
“It’s back where it belongs. My coach told us he used to win it all the time when he was here. I just wanted to bring it back for him and all the fans here.”
Trujillo scored the lone goal in the game on a penalty kick in the 28th minute.
“Of course I’m nervous, but when everything is at stake, you just have to put that away,” Trujillo said. “It just felt so good. I was on top of the world.”
Trujillo was fouled in the box and hit a strong shot to the right side of the goal, freezing Quartz Hill junior goalkeeper Divontae Williams.
“I’ve been saying it all year, Brian is the best player in this league, hands down,”
Hernandez said. “He showed it today. That’s what big-time players do, they show up to big games. That’s what he did. He took over the game. He was everywhere. He got the penalty for us. He got the goal for us. He defended. He attacked. That’s what the best player in the league does. He’s a Golden League champ.”
Williams made a handful of saves before the penalty kick in the first half, including a leaping deflection of a shot by Trujillo in the 14th minute.
“It’s pressure, nerves, but you just have to come out and play,” Trujillo said. “That’s what my boys did today and we came out on top as champs.”
Quartz Hill had an opportunity to tie the game in the 45th minute, as the Rebels were awarded a penalty kick early in the second half.
Quartz Hill senior Kaylon Williams sailed the PK wide right, with Ramos
guessing correctly on the direction of the kick.
“I tried to stay composed and confident in my skills and what I can do,” said Ramos, a second-year varsity player. “We came out on top.
“Although, yes there is pressure, but you just have to be confident in that position, because he can come out big. It is a great feeling. I thought it was a missed call, but I kept my composure and the ball never lies.”
Hernandez said Ramos had eight to 10 saves.
“We’ve had penalties before and Jesse is a big, intimidating keeper that anybody stepping up to the play should feel intimidated,” Hernandez said. “He’s confident when there is a PK or free kick. He was confident. I was telling my guys to be ready for the save and luckily he overblew it and that was that.”
Both teams had scoring opportunities throughout the second half.
“We didn’t execute in both 18s and Palmdale executed on their opportunity and they won it,” Quartz Hill coach Robert Gonzalez said. “Congratulations to Palmdale.
They earned it. They earned it tonight.”
The game was physical at times, with three yellow cards being issued and the game was delayed for several minutes in the 75th minute when two Palmdale players were shook up while going after a ball. Palmdale sophomore Anthony Robles landed hard on the ground after making a leaping attempt at the ball.
The Falcons won the league title by winning six of its last seven matches in the second half of league play, with a scoreless tie against third-place Eastside on Jan. 24.
The streak started after a 7-2 loss at Quartz Hill on Jan. 15.
“We lost to them 7-2 and I knew that wasn’t my team,” Hernandez said. “Sometimes the score can be deceiving. I knew my guys had an off night. What better way to get the revenge, to get the title and go into the playoffs as the No. 1 seed. That’s big time. What an end to the season.”
The Falcons held a ceremony to honor its seniors before the game, with players and family taking several photos.
They returned to the same spot on the field taking even more photos to commemorate the league title.
“To come to the second round and not lose a game, it’s unheard of,” Hernandez said. “But I’ve been saying to these guys all year, I’ve been preaching, hard work and believe. We’re believing the whole way here. We weren’t looking past any game. Here we are Golden League champs.
“It’s hard because it’s a young team, so you know you’re going to have emotions. It’s just a matter of staying positive with them and being able to believe. These kids believed. Whether you want to believe it or not, we’re a young, experienced team. We’ve got a lot of young guys on this team. We’re graduating eight seniors, but only two starters. We believed and that’s been the preach all year.”
The CIF-Southern Section playoff brackets will be released on Saturday.