Goals, defense key to victories for Rams

By Dick Sparrer

Goals win soccer games, no doubt about it.

But it doesn't hurt to play pretty good defense, too.

The Willow Glen boys soccer team did a little of both last week, and the result was a pair of tight victories in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.

The Rams opened the week with a hard-earned 3-2 win over Andrew Hill, and they backed that up with a close 1-0 win over Valley Christian. Willow Glen is now 3-0-1 in league play and 8-1-3 for the year.

The Rams scored just enough goals to win the two games, but clinched the victories because of their performance on the other end of the field. "Our defense is doing really well," said Willow Glen coach Sue Parisi after the two wins.

Oscar Garcia scored a first-half goal off an assist from Jianni Guerriero to give the Rams the 1-0 lead, but it took a big save by fullback Ramon Duran to help clinch the win.

"He had a save off the line in the second half," said Parisi of Duran.

The fullback's save was almost an instant replay of a save by fullback Manolo Rosales earlier in the week that helped save the 3-2 win over Hill.

Goalkeeper Michael Lawrence came through with a save when he blocked a Hill shot in the first half, but the Falcons followed up the miss by tapping another another toward the open goal. Rosales was there to save the second shot, and that would prove crucial for the Rams later in the game.

Osbi Gonzales scored off an assist from Daniel Villafuerte in the 69th minute of play to break a 2-2 tie and lift the Rams to the win.

Rudy Ochoa had given the Rams the early lead when he scored off a Dustin Cohen assist in the 12th minute.

Hill tied the game, but Willow Glen broke the tie when Hugo Sigala knocked in an unassisted goal in the 37th minute. The Rams took that 2-1 lead in at intermission.

Hill tied the game early in the second half, but Gonzales broke the tie with his game-winning goal.

The Rams, who were to visit Piedmont Hills on Jan. 11, will host Lincoln on Jan. 13, 3:30 p.m.

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