Freshman is the hero for No. 4 Los Alamitos

ANAHEIM - A newcomer to one of the county’s most intense rivalries made the biggest play in yet another classic installment of the Sunset League girls soccer battle between No. 4 Los Alamitos and No. 2 Esperanza.

Freshman Lindsey Salcido scored the game winning goal two minutes into the second 10-minute overtime period to give the Griffins a 2-1 victory over the Aztecs on Tuesday at Esperanza High.

“I knew that we needed a goal at that time and I really wanted to get it in,” said Salcido. “Winning here on their home field feels really good.”

The Griffins (11-2-4, 2-0-0) avenged a 2-0 loss to the Aztecs on Dec. 13 in the semifinals of the Aliso Cup tournament. The two teams will battle again on Feb. 3.

“When that ball went into the net, it was a relief,” said Griffins coach Steve Soler. “We know teams are going to come after us hard and we have to show that we’re up for the challenge because that’s what great teams do.”

The game began as a defensive struggle, as both teams spent the first minutes trying to set up their offensive attacks amid strong defensive pressure.

The Griffins broke through in the 12th minute on a goal by Salcido’s older sister, Kelsey, a junior, who hit a line drive near the top of the box that curled into the left top corner of the goal.

Los Alamitos continued their superb defense throughout the first half and didn't allow the Aztecs a shot on goal.

Esperanza (13-2-1, 1-1) began to find its offensive footing in the second half. Aztecs seniors Lauren Kennedy, Courtney Garcia and Kylie Bono created scoring chances in the box and near the goal.

That offensive pressure in the attacking third finally paid off in the 29th minute of the half. Junior Erica Mazeau hit a twisting liner that went into the top left corner of the net for her fifth goal of the season, tying the score at 1.

The two teams battled evenly over the last 10 minutes of the game and through the first 10- minute overtime period.

The Griffins finally broke the tie as senior Lauren Ingram sent a well-placed corner kick into the middle of the box, where Lindsey Salcido got a head on the ball and knocked it into the bottom left corner of the goal.

“That’s the second time we’ve lost this season off a corner kick,” Aztecs coach John King said. “We need to play with effort and pride and we didn’t have that tonight.”

Contact the writer: jeichelberger@ocregister.com