HUNTINGTON BEACH – Los Alamitos girls soccer coach Mossy Kennedy might have said it best when he called the match “a game of consequence.”
Edison and Los Alamitos entered the night tied for fourth in the Orange County rankings, and more importantly, with a chance to gain the early edge in the Sunset League standings.
The Chargers received a marvelous performance from their back line in defeating Los Alamitos, 1-0, Thursday in the league opener for both teams at Edison.
Left back Maddy Macias scored in the 15th minute, and Jessica Neighbors made five saves for the Chargers (10-3-1).
In a push to score the game’s first goal, Chargers coach Kerry Crooks implored her team to send numbers forward. It paid dividends almost immediately.
After coming up with a steal, Amanda Erickson broke up the right side. She dropped a pass into the box for Amy Feinstein, who put it on net. The initial shot was blocked by Taylor Vanis (three saves), but Macias came crashing in on the rebound for the score.
“We’ve just been trying to get more people on the attack,” Crooks said. “Whenever you have a full back coming through, it’s hard for the other team to counteract. She came in unchecked.”
The Griffins (8-2-4) had chances to score thanks to the work of Ally La Carra-Platt and Carley Brown up front. In the 19th minute, La Carra-Platt got behind the defense. Her shot bounced off of Neighbors and continued toward the net, but Aubrey Grandon cleared it at the goal line.
“When you see that ball get past you, you have to run as fast as you can and give it everything you have,” Grandon said. “Just to get a little toe poke on the ball counts.”
Los Alamitos earned four corner kicks in the final eight minutes, but it couldn’t convert. The best chance came when Bryn Chesser sent a cross into the box for Sydney Cooper, but her redirection went wide.
“In an intense game like this, we didn’t have the luxury of squandering chances,” Kennedy said. “(Edison) played really well.”
