Constricting defense, aggressive offense, everything was working for the Rattlers in this one, including the impressive showing of a rising star in desert soccer in Jose Antonio Guerrero.
Only a freshman, Guerrero displayed a veteran’s scoring touch in this one. The first goal of the night came in the first half off of Guerrero’s foot when he ripped a 30-yarder into the upper-left corner of the net with a shot so quick and so accurate that the goalkeeper didn’t have a chance.
The Rattlers added a penalty kick goal about 10 minutes later when senior Bryan Hernandez calmly ripped one into the lower left quadrant of the net after a handball by Unversity Prep in the box.
Rancho Mirage's Jose Antonio Guerrero (8) celebrates his second goal of the night with teammate Bryan Hernandez (7) during the second half of their CIF-SS Division 5 second-round playoff game in Rancho Mirage, Calif., Friday, Feb. 9, 2024.
Rancho Mirage, the co-champs of the Desert Valley League, took that 2-0 lead into halftime and extended it with 25 minutes left when Guerrero again got free, took one glance at the goal and ripped a right-to-left bender around the keeper and into the right side of the net. He made it look easy.
“If you have a shot, just shoot it, don't take time to think,” said Guerrero, speaking like a true goal-scorer. "It feels good to be a part of this team, we all get along. I'm only a freshman and we just all have a good relationship seniors, freshmen everyone. That chemistry helps."
That chemistry helped the Rattlers earn a share of the Desert Empire League title this year and they are currently the No. 3-ranked team in Division 5.
With the win, the Rattlers advance to the quarterfinals and will be on the road Tuesday at Esperanza, which beat Nogales 2-1 on Friday.
Coach Carlos Calixto would be happy to bottle Friday night's performance and take it on the road with him.
"This is probably the best we've played thus far," Calixto said. "We've had very good games, but this was probably the best. I felt like 95% of the time they were doing what we wanted them to be doing out there."
Rancho Mirage's Marco Sanchez (2) competes with University Prep's Yahir Martinez for control of the ball during the second half of their CIF-SS Division 5 second-round playoff game in Rancho Mirage, Calif., Friday, Feb. 9, 2024.
University Prep, from Victorville, could never get much offense generated. The Rattlers used their speed and agility to swarm the much taller visitors, making it difficult for University Prep to string together passes. Goalkeeper Derek Calixto wasn't tested much, but when he was he was up to the task, particularly being in the right place to stop a perfectly headed cornerkick in the waning minutes of the game.
Coach Calixto hopes to see more of the same in the next round, but really he just wants the team to enjoy themselves out there. That's the secret to success in his mind.
"Very happy these guys work very hard, proud of all of them," he said. "These next few days we need to regain our health, rest, recuperate, have a good practice session on Monday and then we'll... Click here to read full article
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