Gusty and gutsy: La Quinta boys' soccer finds a way to survive and advance
You've heard the overused sports phrase "when the dust settled" right? As in "When the dust settled in the Super Bowl, it was the Los Angeles Rams who came out on top."
Well that didn't apply to Tuesday night's high school soccer playoff game between La Quinta and South Hills (West Covina) because the dust never settled. It was swirling and gusting and getting in players' eyes and mouths from start to finish.
Despite the harsh, ugly conditions, the game had a beautiful and dramatic finish. La Quinta's Hector Baltierra flicked a centering pass with his head up and over the South Hills keeper with less than 30 seconds left to lift La Quinta to a remarkable 2-1 victory and into the CIF-SS Division 5 quarterfinals.
It was an emotional rollercoaster (speaking of sports cliches) for the Blackhawks who led 1-0, before South Hills scored with just two minutes left in the game. It was a deflating equalizer and seemed destined to send the game into overtime with all the momentum on the South Hills side.
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But the Blackhawks kept at it, and Aidan Brothers took control of the ball on the right side and hit a centering ball that found the head of Baltierra. He deftly chipped it over the keeper and into the back left corner of the net.
It was such a thing of beauty, surely that must be a specialty of Baltierra's.
"I wish. That was probably the first and last header I'll ever score," he said after the game. "I'm just happy it came at the perfect time. I mean lifting us into the next round. It feels amazing. I'm at a loss for words."
The goal touched off a wild celebration as Baltierra raced toward the La Quinta stands shouting and puffing out his chest and grabbing his shirt to show the Blackhawks faithful who was about to win this game. His teammates mobbed and hooted and hollered with the crowd.
They had to restore order and play the remainder of the game, but after only about 20 seconds of play, the final whistle blew. The Blackhawks were able to get back to celebrating, while the visitors lay on the ground in despair.
It was a well-played game in very difficult conditions. The wind, which was blowing perpendicular to the pitch, created an effect similar to shooting pool on an uneven table, where the ball kept rolling to one side. Both teams managed to cope well with the gusts and dust, though, and the wind didn't seem to play a factor in any of the goals.
"Playing in the wind is tough, but it’s an issue for both teams," said La Quinta head coach Scott McKee. "You're trying to keep the ball on the ground as much as you can. It's just another part of the game that you have to overcome."
It was a win that appeared to be in the Blackhawks' grasp and then all of a sudden wasn't. Osvaldo Ramos Lugo scored with 18 minutes left in the game on an assist from Rene Mendez to give the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead. Then, La Quinta just tried to hang on for those final minutes that always seem to go extra slow when you have a one-goal lead.
Sure enough, two crisp passes by South Hills put them in position, and they capitalized to tie it with two minutes left.
The Blackhawks' shoulders' slumped, but their coaches and their captains were imploring the team to regroup.
"One of our coaches was shouting 'Finish the game! There’s still time on the clock!' and we got the ball on their end of the field and made something happen," McKee said. "It was a tight game, we were evenly matched, both teams defensively sound. There weren't a lot of opportunities. And then what a wild finish."
McKee said Baltierra, who had just been reinserted in the game for the final two minutes after South Hills tied it, is the type of player who can make plays like that.
"That kid is a gamer, and he's been there for us in big moments before," McKee said of the junior who also scored in the Blackhawks' 2-0 first-round win. "He got his on the ball, and it was one of those ones that had eyes and found the back of the net. And the celebration was fun to watch, too."
The celebration lifted the sixth-ranked Blackhawks into the quarterfinal round. Their next game will be Friday on the road at Artesia High of Lakewood. Artesia is ranked No. 3.
"That's the best part about advancing, another practice, another game. That's what it's all about," Baltierra said.
Shad Powers covers high school sports for The Desert Sun. Reach him at shad.powers@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: CIF-SS soccer playoffs: Late goal lifts La Quinta to dramatic win
