Benefield: SRJC men’s soccer making big mark on college scene

So is Santa Rosa Junior College men’s soccer team the slowest starting squad ever, or the fastest?

Consider this: Twice this season the players have barely had their boots laced before finding themselves down a goal.

But consider this also: That same squad set the school record for fastest goal. Time? Officially it’s listed as 19 seconds, but there are reports of 16 seconds and even 12 seconds.

Whatever the count, it was quick.

And also fast? The Bear Cubs’ start on the season. They are 10-1-1. They lost their season opener to Cabrillo College on Aug. 28 and haven’t lost since. Their only tie came against College of the Canyons, and that was more than a month ago.

The Bear Cubs sit alone atop the Big 8 Conference and are ranked sixth in the state by the California Community College Sports Information Association.

Still, longtime coach Marty Kinahan is no fan of the slow starts his young squad - he starts eight freshmen - has exhibited this year.

“Basically we got off the bus and were losing,” he said.

But along with the frustratingly sluggish starts is something else: grit.

His team may dig itself into a hole, but it’s got the firepower to climb its way out.

“They don’t get rattled,” Kinahan said.

“They are not a super emotional team, they don’t get really high or really low,” he said.

And they believe. Or at least the stat sheet indicates they do.

While the Bear Cubs have had some head-scratching starts, whether they are super fast or painfully slow, they have also had some gutsy last-minute finishes. This team doesn’t stop playing until the final whistle sounds.

Against College of the Canyons, Santa Rosa got a goal in the 90th minute to tie, against Merritt College they scored in the 89th minute for the win and against West Hills Community College they scored in the 86th minute to win it.

According to Kinahan, last year’s team might have settled. That tie would have been a loss and those wins would have ended in ties. This squad has something different.

“They believe in each other and they just keep grinding,” Kinahan said.

Sophomore defender Oscar Cabrera, who attended Ridgway High School, said the binds the Bear Cubs put themselves into on occasion aren’t good, but there is something to be learned from them. Namely, that they have the will to come back.

“We have been in that uncomfortable situation,” he said.

If a team has never been behind, never conceded a gimme goal, never been tested, it’s hard to handle it with poise when it does happen. The young Bear Cubs are learning, said freshman forward Chris Ochoa.

“I feel like sometimes we go in not focused, but once we get scored on, we know that we have to keep calm, keep doing our job,” the Petaluma High grad said. “We don’t need to be rushed, just keep our focus. I feel like it comes down to who wants it more, and we usually want it more.”

“It’s like a life lesson, that we should be more prepared,” he said.

Fellow freshman Wilson Briggs was a bit more blunt.

“I think sometimes it does us a favor because it gives us a kick up the bum,” he said.

The Bear Cubs didn’t need a bum kick against rival Modesto on Oct. 2.

It took less than 20 seconds for the Bear Cubs to put one in the back of the net against their Big 8 Conference rivals. It was a respectable 2-0 at the half but then the floodgates opened. The Bear Cubs won 7-1, marking the second time this season they have netted seven goals.

The up front combination of Ochoa and Briggs, who played his prep soccer in his native York, England, are largely responsible. Ochoa has eight goals and five assists on the year, while Briggs is right behind with seven goals and four assists.

Ochoa put the scoring bursts and the current winning streak down to chemistry. It wasn’t quite there early on, but they’re dialed in now.

“We are good together,” he said. “We get along at school, during practice. We try to find what we can to help each other out.”

So are these Bear Cubs slow starters or fast starters?

No matter, they say, all eyes are now on how they finish.

You can reach staff columnist Kerry Benefield at 526-8671 or kerry.benefield@pressdemocrat.com, on Twitter @benefield and on Instagram at kerry.benefield.