ANAHEIM – This could be Katella’s year.
The No. 7 Knights won the Sunny Hills Summer League boys soccer championship in July, conquered the North Orange County Classic in December, and then knocked off the defending Orange League champions on Friday.
Kevin Ruiz scored the winner for Katella off a pass from Abraham Gonzalez in the 43rd minute, turning the Knights’ first shot of the game into 1-0 victory against rival Anaheim in the league opener for both teams at Anaheim High.
“It’s not anything that I am doing,” Katella coach Scott Mackay said. “We are very talented and the chemistry on the team is good, too.”
Anaheim coach Joe Chavez said the Colonists “weren’t up for the game” mentally because there was some doubt early in day whether the game would be played. The recent storms left the school’s field muddy and several players had problems keeping their footing during the contest.
Senior goalkeeper Omar Pinones slid on his back at the top of the 6-yard box in the 66th minute but, luckily for the Knights (12-1-2, 1-0), he stopped right in front of Melvin Ulloa as he was lining up to take a shot for Anaheim (6-3-2, 0-1). Pinones knocked the ball away to preserve the shutout.
Pinones finished with five saves, including one in the 75th minute when he leaped into the upper left corner to grab a shot by Anthony Chavez.
“The league is full of contenders, and you never know what is going to happen,” Chavez said. “Sometimes sloppy field conditions can equalize everything.”
The Colonists dominated possession, and twice in the first half Carlos Esparza came within inches of scoring, launching two shots just above the crossbar.
Abel Bautista made some nice runs down the left side for the Knights. In the 30th minute, he sent a cross to the far post that just missed connecting with Chris Lopez as he sprinted toward the penalty spot.
“Anaheim is the standard in this league, and they have been for a couple seasons, so this is huge for us,” Mackay said.
Contact the writer: ddottore@scng.com
