Epic battle ends with Los Alamitos moving on

LOS ALAMITOS - With the fate of her team resting on her shoulders, Los Alamitos goalie Amanda McDonough didn’t let the enormity of the moment distract her from the job at hand.

“The same thing goes through my mind every time in PK’s,” said McDonough. “It’s always shooter against keeper.”

It was that simple approach that helped McDonough and the Griffins advance one step closer to their season-long goal of a CIF-SS Division I championship.

McDonough, a senior, recorded three of her 13 saves in the penalty kick session, as Los Alamitos edged Aliso Niguel, 7-6, after the teams played to a scoreless tie in the CIF-SS Division I semifinals on Tuesday afternoon at Laurel School in Los Alamitos.

“We came out here and played as hard as we could because we wanted to prove ourselves,”  McDonough said. “This team has so much heart which helps us win games.”

The Griffins (21-3-5), who were eliminated in the quarterfinals last season by the Wolverines (22-3-2), will face defending Division I co-champion San Clemente in Saturday’s championship game at Warren High in Downey.

“Amanda was phenomenal and we believe in her 100 percent,” Griffins coach Steve Soler said.  “We know that it’s going to be an exciting game with San Clemente because they’re a good team and it’s going to come down to who wants it more.”

The two teams played to a standstill throughout a well played first half that saw each team’s defense shut down the opposition’s scoring chances.

The second half was more of the same, as Griffins senior defender Katie Peterson and Wolverines senior defender Haley Horton each spearheaded strong defensive efforts on both sides that minimized quality scoring chances.

With time winding down in regulation, the Wolverines had a golden chance to win, as a Griffin foul in the box resulted in a penalty kick for Horton. However, her attempt came out low and McDonough got in front of the ball for the save, sending the game into overtime.

Los Alamitos nearly won it in the second overtime period. Junior Ariana Carillo sent a pass to freshman forward Taylor Vargo, whose shot attempt just missed to the left of the goal.

With the large crowd surrounding the field, the penalty kick session was a classic. The teams matched each other through the first six shooters.

The Griffins caught a break on the seventh attempt when Wolverine senior Natalie Zuabi’s shot hit the crossbar and bounced straight down, inches from crossing the goal line. But Wolverines’ junior goalie Kathleen Messinger stopped Griffins senior Natalie Ohishi on the ensuing kick to keep the shootout tied at 5.

Two rounds later, with the contest deadlocked at 6, McDonough made the biggest save of the game, stopping Wolverines senior Megan Sherman.

On the next kick, Godfrey hit a hard liner past Messinger for the win, touching off a wild celebration from the Los Alamitos fans.

“I was chosen on the spot to take that kick and I really didn’t have time to think about it,”  Godfrey said. “As a team, we do our best and push through any situation.”

Aliso Niguel coach Randy Dodge applauded the play of his team.

“I am disappointed for my 16 seniors, but this game was great for high school soccer,” said Dodge. “These kids were the best group I’ve ever had and gave everything they could.”

Contact the writer: jeichelberger@ocregister.com