Benefield: SRJC women focusing on soccer state championship run

Santa Rosa Junior College's defense defused one of the biggest offensive threats in California Tuesday afternoon, as they held silent the second most prolific scorer in the California Community College Athletic Association en route to a convincing 2-0 win against City College of San Francisco.

The Bear Cubs, the No. 3 ranked team in the Northern California Regionals, hosted No. 6 City College but were none too welcoming to their dominant scorer, sophomore Jesse Bareilles.

Barreilles came into the contest ranked No. 2 in the state with 33 goals, but the cohesive Bear Cubs back line kept nearly every threat at bay.

“They are very connected,” coach Crystal Howard said of her back line. “They know what to expect of each other.”

They made it look easy.

Howard had the team watch film on the Rams and where Bareilles was most dangerous. Turns out the tall striker liked the balls that came in over the top, so the Bear Cubs played deeper and focused on winning things out of the air.

“Lexi Martinez was on absolutely every header we could get to,” freshman and Maria Carrillo grad Annika Cerini said of her fellow frosh who prepped at Casa Grande. “We made sure that any ball in the air that we could get to we were on first.”

But it was Cerini who might have set the tone for the entire game when her hustle was wholly responsible for the Bear Cubs' second goal and what felt like the dagger in the Rams chances.

Seven minutes into the second half, with the Bear Cubs up 1-0, a long ball was sent into the corner and looked for all intents and purposes as if it would roll over the end line for a Rams goal kick. No one would have questioned had every player on the field assumed it was going out and let it go. Cerini thought otherwise.

“It comes down to who wants it,” Cerini said.

She blazed into the corner, sent a screeching cross into the box that the Rams' backup goalkeeper juggled before it bounced across the line. The official stat line will list it as a Rams own goal, but it was 100 percent Cerini hustle.

“We are going just all the way this year,” she said. “We want to win state. That is our goal this season and that's what it's been since the beginning of the season.”

To do that, to advance past the third round in which they were sent home last year, they will need the services of sophomore forward Amanda Galbraith.

Despite having 22 goals on the season which ranks her tied for sixth in the state, Galbraith did not start Tuesday. In fact, she only entered the game with 15 minutes to play in the first half. That was by design, Howard said.

For the second time in two seasons, Galbraith has had to sit key games after getting red card suspensions. Galbraith was sent off in the team's final regular season game and had to watch from the spectator's side for the Bear Cubs' OT win against Canada College in round one.

Howard said she consulted with team leaders about how to proceed.

“The team has been moving forward and we wanted her to be a part of it,” Howard said. “All of them said that at the end of the day … she's a part of this team and we want her on the field with us.”

She is clearly a difference maker.

She put the Bear Cubs up 1-0 one minute into the second half on a long, through ball from sophomore Nikki Elliott, a Petaluma High grad. Galbraith, who played at Casa Grande, let the ball come over her shoulder, took a touch and slotted a simple shot into the right side of the net.

“When Amanda is on the field, they are a different team,” City College coach Jeff Wilson said. “I told her that.”

“All credit goes to Santa Rosa, they stuck to their game plan.,” he said. “We ran into team that was better.”

The Rams certainly ran into a team that was deeper.

There were three Rams on the bench Tuesday and one of them was on crutches. With eight minutes to go in the first half, starting Rams goalkeeper sophomore Jocelyn Amable went down with a knee injury on a fair challenge by Bear Cubs freshman Kayleigh Alves, who played at Middletown.

The loss was not insignificant - Amable ranks fourth in the state in save percentage.

Up next for the Bear Cubs is a round three match up Saturday with the winner of Tuesday night's game between No. 2 Folsom Lake and No. 10 Cosumnes River.

The Bear Cubs beat Folsom 1-0 in September and tied them last month. Against Cosumnes, the Bear Cubs lost 2-1 in September and tied last month.

But Howard isn't looking back at those games. She's got the Bear Cubs looking at the playoffs as the team's “second season.”

In this season, they are undefeated.

You can reach staff columnist Kerry Benefield at 526-8671 or kerry.benefield@pressdemocrat.com, on Twitter @benefield and on Instagram at kerry.benefield. Podcasting on iTunes “Overtime with Kerry Benefield.”