Cardinal Newman girls win NorCal soccer championship

Cardinal Newman's girls soccer team took home the crown as NorCal Division III champions by conquering Bradshaw Christian High School of Sacramento in a heated 2-1 contest Saturday night that needed overtime to declare a winner.

After the Bradshaw Pride's fast start that gave them a 1-0 advantage in the first 10 minutes, the game collapsed into a fury, with quick kicks and dives in an attempt to find any fault or misstep to be taken advantage of for a goal. Keely Roy, Cardinal Newman junior, scored in the 35th min to tie the game at halftime.

“In the second half we had opportunity after opportunity, but their goalkeeper made save after save,” Cardinal Newman coach John Gilson said after the win. “I think we had 12 to 15 shots on goal, but we couldn't put it away and we went to overtime.”

The Cardinals finally broke the tie in the 15-minute overtime period on Roy's unassisted shot from the top of the box to give the underdogs a 2-1 lead for good with five minutes remaining.

“This team (Bradshaw) is very good; this team played and we weren't sure what we were playing against,” said Gilson. “But we kept pounding away and pounding away, to a point where we almost felt it wasn't going to happen.”

The sixth-seeded Cardinals (14-10, 7-7) and their Odyssean journey ran through fourth-seeded Bradshaw, which had only lost one game, putting an exclamation point on a season that won't soon be forgotten. Through trials and tribulations, the Cardinals persevered and performed miles beyond any expectations.

Their inspiring run came to an end with a title after three playoff upset wins in five days. They defeated No. 3 seed Center High School and No. 2 seed Sacred Heart Cathedral Prepatory en route to the championship game.

In a season that easily might not have existed at all, the girls went on an epic run from sixth seed to state champions.

October's North Bay fires hit just before the soccer season.

When the Tubbs fire struck northern Santa Rosa, it engulfed the Cardinal Newman high school campus and damaged the soccer field, requiring the team to practice and play elsewhere.

But Gilson and his coaching staff rallied the players to take on the fiercest challenge; playing through the devastation without a home field.

Ninety students - including six varsity soccer players - lost their homes, and about half the campus was damaged.

Most of the team's practices were on foreign turf of all different sizes and terrains. It defined their defensive, gritty mentality. Allowing an average of just one goal a match, their back four defenders and goalie - consisting of underclassmen - locked down tough offenses in the North Bay League, North Coast Section and CIF NorCal campaigns.

“The kids were so physically and mentally worn out that it became about controlling your emotions,” Gilson said. “Before the overtime period started, we talked about controlling your emotions, to believe in each other, to take care of each other and that this is going to happen.”

Sure enough, it did - and their season will be one to remember.