Mar. 8.
PIEDMONT, CA (MPG) – Last week was an emotional one for the Williams soccer team as it experienced both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat after making its way to the title match of CIF Division V NorCal Regional Championships.
In three matches over five days, the Yellowjackets traveled some 850 miles and played over 300 minutes on the pitch, knocking off No. 2 Lowell and No. 6 Caruthers in shootouts before finally falling to No. 5 Piedmont 1-4.
Starting their historic journey in San Francisco on Mar. 4 against Lowell, No. 7 seeded Williams scored a first half goal to take the early lead, but saw the Cardinals rally for the equalizer in the second half.
With no scoring during the overtime periods, the teams entered the shootout phase where the ‘Jackets saw Leo Hernandez, Ernie Lemus and Andrew Bautista bury their shots.
However, with goalkeeper Jose Pineda down with an injury, it was Hernandez who stepped in and blocked two attempts as the Yellowjackets prevailed in the upset.
With the win, the team next made the nearly four-hour trek to Caruthers, where the match once again ended in a 1-1 draw and after another scoreless overtime sequence, came down to penalty kicks.
Gerardo Navarro scored the ‘Jackets’ goal during regulation then also converted during the shootout, while Hernandez, Lemus, Bautista, Jorge Saavedra, Matthew Cervantes and Leo Esparza made good on their chances as well.
But this time around, the match-winner came off the foot of Julian Garcia, which in turn gave Williams an opportunity to participate in a NorCal Regional final for the first time in school history.
On the road again, the Yellowjackets found themselves at Witter Field on the campus of Piedmont High School playing against the Highlanders, who had previously defeated No. 8 Colusa on Mar. 6.
Enduring a hostile environment in terms of home field advantage, Williams got no help from the officials either, which ultimately allowed Piedmont to capitalize on set pieces.
Fighting until the bitter end however, the ‘Jackets did get a late goal from Lemus off an assist from Hernandez, but it simply wasn’t enough.
Despite the disappointing loss, head coach Humberto Guzman and assistant Anabel Jacobo were full of pride in discussing their squad’s accomplishments saying, “It has been a season for the books. Winning sections back-to-back is a once in a lifetime experience and the history and memories these boys made will always be remembered. We gave it our all on every field and making it to state is something to be proud of.”
Williams concluded the year with an overall record of 15-2-2 and as the Northern Section Division III champions.