Brock Paz’s two goals lead CdM boys’ soccer over Sage Hill
The Corona del Mar boys’ soccer team defeated visiting Sage Hill 5-1 on Wednesday, a line score that, on the surface, told little of two programs whose respective goals are not so far apart.
Both programs look to build after introducing a number of new faces to the fold, and after both missed the playoffs a season ago, their coaches have new aspirations in mind.
“I think automatic playoff berth is the way to go, to always be sure, but you only play six games in [the Surf] League,” said CdM coach Eddie Bairam after the Sea Kings were left out of the playoffs with an 11-6-3 record at the end of last season. “It’s really difficult. You’re playing Edison and Los Al and [Newport] Harbor. It’s a local rival and two of the powerhouses in the [Sunset] Conference, so it’s going to be tough.
“It’s going be difficult, but you know, it’s a challenge, and that’s why we play.”
Still among their ranks are goalkeeper Matt Wood and midfielder Brock Paz, both four-year varsity players for CdM (3-1-2) who have developed a special bond. Paz said it was Wood who taught him how to do a back flip, and he performed one in celebration of a critical second-half goal.
Clinging to a 2-1 lead, Paz rolled a wet ball through Sage Hill goalkeeper Max Van Dooren (two saves), as the Sea Kings regained a two-goal advantage with 15 minutes left in the contest.
“It felt awesome,” Paz said of the Sea Kings matching a season-high with five goals scored. “After them getting that one goal and then going into the second half, I kind of just talked to the team, and I said, ‘We got to get in there. First five minutes, we got to get a goal.’
“They just got a goal, so they can get one more and tie it up. I’m stoked. Everyone kind of went in full attack mode, our defense, as well.”
Two minutes later, Ryan Peloso had found the back of the net, the second sequence in which Sage Hill (4-1-1) had conceded in the immediate aftermath of a CdM scoring strike. Logan Walsh bolted in off the left wing and scored in the right-side netting for the game’s final tally.
“I felt like the goalkeepers, for key moments, for us came up strong,” Bairam said of the tandem of Sean Shirvani and Wood. “I thought theirs was a bit unfortunate with that third goal. I thought that took the stuffing out of them a little bit. We were 2-1 up. We weren’t looking too composed in the middle of the second half.”
Van Dooren made a couple of stops early on, including a denial of a bruising shot by Paz in transition in the 13th minute.
The Sea Kings got on the board in the 24th minute, as Rodrigo Fabregas crossed a ball in from the right edge for Bryce Roberts, who slid in and touched the ball into the back of the net.
Paz doubled the lead a minute later, Peloso playing the ball into space behind a Sage Hill back line that was playing high. The senior midfielder won the race and cashed in.
Sage Hill coach Raphael Alves said scheduling CdM was about exposing his team to another level of play. The Lightning went 0-7-1 against Pacific Coast League competition last season. Alves added he wants to break the ice in the win column more than once this time around.
Freshman striker Jack Weisberg scored on a rising left-footed shot in the 40th minute for Sage Hill, which already has more wins than it had all of last season. The Lightning came in with a four-game winning streak — twice against Capistrano Valley Christian, the others against Cerritos Valley Christian and Tarbut V’Torah.
“It is great, for me, because they tried as much as possible,” Alves said of his team’s effort against CdM. “Even though they got affected after the goals, it’s something to learn. They need to work with that, to understand that the game model we’re applying is staying there regardless of the opponent or whatever happened.”
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