Braden River battles, falls just short of district title

BRADEN RIVER — They had seen it before.

They knew Manatee’s capabilities; and as a result, the Braden River boys soccer team spent the week before the Class 4A-District 11 championship game preparing for the Hurricanes.

In their two previous meetings, the Hurricanes scored at least one goal off a throw-in — and the Pirates knew it was only a matter of time before they tried it again.

They were right.

Braden River did its best to defend, but one long throw-in and a defensive miscue by the Pirates led to the lone goal of the game.

Manatee’s Carlos Reyes converted a free-header inside the box off a long throw-in from Roshoir Elliot with about nine minutes remaining, propelling the Hurricanes to a 1-0 victory over the Pirates Jan. 27.

“We gave them too many throw-ins, and unfortunately, they put one in on us,” Braden River coach Janjay Gehndyu said. “That was the difference in the game. We knew that coming in, and it came to bite us there at the end.

“We prepared for it,” Gehndyu said. “We talked about it. Unfortunately, that last one there at the end we just couldn’t stop it. It was very tough for us.”

The loss was particularly difficult for the top-seeded Pirates, who were playing in their first district championship game in the program’s history after splitting their two previous meetings with the Hurricanes.

The Pirates advanced to the district championship after blanking Sarasota 5-0 in the district semifinals Jan. 25.

“This is our first time in history being in a district championship game,” Gehndyu said. “It’s a big step. Every year, we’ve improved, and it’s the positives that we look at. We’ll take it step by step, and we’ll look to win a district title next year.”

The Pirates had several chances to score, including 12 minutes into the second half when forward Austin Myara found himself one-on-one with Manatee goalkeeper Jonathan Hernandez.

Myara’s shot went past Hernandez, but Kobus Reed was able to get back in time to clear the ball off the line, preventing the game’s first goal.

Late in the period, Braden River forward Fabio Vasconcellos fired off two shots, but Hernandez saved both shots, preventing the Pirates from sending the game into overtime.

“Defense couldn’t defend, and our offense couldn’t score,” senior defender Tyler Marshall said. “It’s that simple. As the time got less and less, we just cleared it up and didn’t really play. It was just a bad defending job and a bad attacking job.”

Although Braden River fell short of its first district title, the Pirates season isn’t over yet.

As the District 11 runner-up, Braden River traveled to Naples Gulf Coast for a Class 4A-Region 3 quarterfinal Jan. 31. Results from the Pirates regional quarterfinal match were unavailable as of press time Tuesday. 

The winner of the regional quarterfinal between Braden River and Naples Gulf Coast will face the winner of the other quarterfinal match between Manatee and Barron Collier in a regional semifinal Feb. 3.
Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].

Lady Mustangs fall in semis
Every time she steps into the goal for a penalty kick, Lakewood Ranch goalkeeper Alexandra Latham knows all eyes are on her. Except those of her head coach.

Lakewood coach Guy Virgilio never watches penalty kicks, including three in the Class 4A-District 11 semifinals versus Braden River Jan. 19 and four more in the Class 4A-Region 3 quarterfinals versus Naples Barron Collier Jan. 24.

Instead, he turns his back and strolls across the track toward the fence in front of the visiting bleachers and waits for the crowd’s reaction.

“I hear it from the crowd,” Virgilio said.

So when Cape Coral Ida Baker was awarded a penalty kick in the first half of the Class 4A-Region 3 semifinals Jan. 27 as a result of a controversial handball call against Amanda Baar in the box, Virgilio strolled back to the fence and waited as Latham got into position. He didn’t get reaction he wanted.
Latham, who was coming off three straight saves in the Lady Mustangs 4-3 (3-0 penalty kicks) victory over Barron Collier. But this time, Latham wasn’t able to get to the ball in time.

The penalty kick was the lone goal of the game, as the visiting Bulldogs walked away with a 1-0 victory and a trip to the regional finals, while the Lady Mustangs saw their season come to a disappointing end.
“I did not feel Amanda (Baar) was trying to grab the ball like the refs were claming,” Virgilio said. “I thought she was trying to protect herself from the shot, because the rule states that if it is intentional, it is a penalty kick. The refs should not have made a difference in the game.”

It was only the third time the Lady Mustangs (16-5-2) have been shut out this season.

Lakewood loses six seniors, including Haley Martin, Kaitlin Deglman, Deana Haller, Taylor Halligan, Marissa Milko and Audrey Reinisch, after falling in the regional semifinals for the second consecutive season. But with 16 players back again next year, the future looks bright.