RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA – Early in her playing days, Santa Margarita goalkeeper Christina Kosmala was asked by a coach if she wanted to be known as “Christina” or “Tina.”
Kosmala said she didn’t have a preference, so her coach decided to call her “Bob.”
Most of her current teammates still call her “Bob,” but Kosmala has been making her name known with her stellar play this postseason.
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CIF-SS DIVISION 1 FINAL
Santa Margarita vs. Edison
Saturday, 5 p.m., at Corona High
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The sophomore goalie has come up huge in penalty-kick situations against Villa Park in the quarterfinals and against top-seeded Harvard-Westlake of Studio City in the semifinals. Her play is one of the reasons the Eagles reached today’s CIF-SS Division 1 championship game against Edison at Corona High.
The clutch plays and big saves are a far cry from where Kosmala was just a few months ago.
She was splitting time in net with Michelle Reiss, but that stopped when Reiss suffered a concussion and neck injury that ended her season.
The injury thrust Kosmala into the goalie role full-time. It was a daunting task for the sophomore who was surrounded on the team by 10 seniors who have signed to play soccer for four-year universities once they graduate.
“She was making just technical mistakes early on,” Santa Margarita coach Chuck Morales said. “Being thrust into a varsity role with a bunch of seniors, who have played at a high level, they expected the same level of performance. They weren’t getting it early on, but she’s picked up her game.”
Kosmala, who acknowledged it was intimidating when she first stepped into the lineup, has settled into the role. She finished the regular season by posting two shutouts as the Eagles (14-3-3) claimed the Trinity League title.
Her solid play spilled over into the postseason, as Kosmala recorded six saves in a shutout of San Juan Hills in the first round.
“I came into the season not wanting to make any mistakes,” Kosmala said. “After I did make a couple, I (became) more confident. I kept doing my best and came up with the results.”
Goalies are the last line of defense for a soccer team. When a game goes to penalty kicks, goalkeepers become the only line of defense.
In the Eagles’ past two games, penalty kicks are where Kosmala rose to the challenge. She stood tough through 100 minutes of regulation in on-and-off again rain against Villa Park, then blocked the Spartans’ final shot in the shootout to send her team to the semifinals.
Then in penalty kicks against Harvard-Westlake, Kosmala blocked a shot from Chloe Castaneda, the Wolverines’ best player, to send Santa Margarita to the finals.
Over the past few seasons, the Eagles have had bad luck with shootouts in the postseason. Kosmala has turned Santa Margarita from weary of penalty kicks to sure of its chances.
“In that semifinal game, I think if you talk to any single one of our teammates, they were feeling her,” Taylor Klawunder said. “They knew she was going to make that big save in the end.”
The moment was so large, Kosmala was in tears after the game, even though her team was victorious.
“She was just crying and crying because the pressure was off,” Morales said. “There’s no position like the goalkeeping position. You are the only one there, and you’re either the hero or the hound.”
The pressure, the growth, the confidence has brought Kosmala to where she is now: on the cusp of Santa Margarita’s first CIF title in more than a decade.
“I’m really pumped for that game. I know a lot of people are going to come support us, and a lot of other schools coming to watch,” she said. “Let’s hope that we come out with the win.”
If the Eagles finish their dramatic playoff run with a victory against Edison, Kosmala’s teammates will have a new name to call her: “CIF Champion”.
