No. 1 Pima converts on break, outlasts AWC

Matadors score late, miss too many opportunities in loss to aztecs

(1) Pima 2

(8) AWC 1

PIM: 4-0, 4-0 ACCAC AWC: 4-2, 3-1 ACCAC

No. 8 Arizona Western came out flat in Thursday night’s loss to No. 1 Pima in men’s soccer.

In a rematch of the ACCAC’s 2019 Region I Championship Game, the Aztecs outlasted the Matadors 2-1.

AWC’s Michele Signorelli notched the team’s only goal in the 87th minute as the Matadors’ aggressive approach down the stretch almost paid off.

The Matadors had nearly six attempts within the last three minutes, but couldn’t connect on the equalizer.

Despite the flurry of shots at the end, AWC’s mishaps in the first half put them in an unfamiliar position in which the Matadors trailed at the break.

“We lost this game in the first 20 minutes,” AWC head coach Kenny Dale said.

In the opening half, despite controlling time of possession and garnering several shots around the net, the Aztecs (4-0, 4-0 ACCAC) pounced on counterattack opportunities to put the Matadors on their heels.

“In our league, it’s so tight and competitive, you’ve got to be ready to play at the beginning and I feel like we started slow,” he said.

Pima, on the other hand, found success on the breakaways and capitalized on AWC’s miscues in the midfield to push the ball down field.

In the 25th minute, Pima’s Zak Mohamed crashed the box and headed a cross past AWC goalie Atsuki Sato. And 15 minutes later, Brian Vu’s circus shot whistled into the back of the net to push the Aztecs’ lead to 2-0.

It’s all the scoring Pima needed as goalkeeper Juan Suarez stopped nearly every Matador shot.

Slight misfortunes

offensively also severely hindered any offensive success by the Matadors. Countless shots banged off the goalpost, including Jesus Sanchez’s shot in the first half from inside 10-yards.

However, the decision making and ball placement around the net wasn’t sharp for AWC as they suffered their first conference

loss of the season.

“We had a number of good chances and guys just panicked,” Dale said. “They start thinking emotionally about scoring the goal before they even score the goal.”

An area the Matadors continually attacked, yet had zero success, was the near side of the net. Suarez swallowed up every attempt, while Dale emphatically emphasized from the sidelines to fire at the cross

corner.

“We have guys that play for themselves more than the team,” Dale said. “We’ve got guys that think they can get it done and be the man...instead of shooting at the far post. We give them examples and examples and examples.”

Arizona Western returns to action Saturday when they host Scottsdale in an attempt to get back in the win column.