Mission Prep wins CIF Central Section girls soccer title: ‘It was a battle’
Ranked the No. 6 seed in CIF Central Section Division 4 playoffs, Mission Prep’s girls soccer team had to show its ability to win on the road against two higher-seeded teams to secure a section title — becoming the sole San Luis Obispo County soccer or basketball team to bring home a championship plaque this year.
The Royals (13-7-5, 3-1-4 Ocean League) beat No. 2 Bishop Union in the semifinal match 2-0 on Tuesday, driving six hours for that away game, and returned home to hit the road three days later for the title game Friday at No. 5 San Joaquin Memorial’s home field in Fresno.
In its 2-0 finals victory on Friday, Mission Prep scored in the 5th and 70th minutes, both goals coming from Isabel Medeiros, a sophomore standout who’s the team’s top goal-scorer on the season with 14.
Peyton Pierce and Phoebe Jensen, who has 10 goals on the season, assisted on Medeiros’ goals.
The first score came on a “great through ball that exploited them space and (Medeiros) just drove in and buried it,” said Mission Prep Coach Jake Morrison. “And then the second one was very similar. We had a good little combination play in transition, and we were able to slot it through and she did the business again.”
Medeiros, who has 10 assists on the season, was named the Ocea League’s Co-MVP along with Pioneer Valley’s Jules Hernandez.
“Isabel is a special talent and has a great nose for the goal and she’s very dynamic,” said Morrison. “We’ve had a lot of great contributions from multiple players this season. But Isabel has been our top goal-getter this season.”
Morrison said that his squad played strong defense and senior goalkeeper Ellie Foster-Adams shut down any chance for San Joaquin Memorial (11-15-6) to get on the board; Sarah Connors and the entire defensive line played a crucial role in securing the shutout victory.
“It was a battle and (San Joaquin Memorial) had a lot of quality in their front four,” Morrison said. “But we were able to shut it down and we transitioned well and dictated things early on. I thought our early goal settled nerves a little bit.”
Morrison said that the team showed a lot of improvement throughout the season. Senior leadership came from Foster-Adams, Ava Szytel, Greer Wilson, Marin De Graw and Sophia Longman.
And the All-Ocean League honorees included Medeiros (Co-MVP); Foster-Adams (goalkeeper MVP); Longman, Connors and Jensen (first team); Pierce, Kate Kilmer, Taylor LaFollette, and Elizabeth Morton (second team); and Addie Blake (honorable mention).
“We’ve had a lot of growth throughout the season, and I think early on we really challenged ourselves with some very strong competition locally,” Morrison said. “We kind of figured things out and then as we moved into league, where there was a lot of parity. I think that really prepared us for this playoff run.”
Placing second in the Ocean League behind Cabrillo, the Royals were within range of winning league.
“I think that just gave the girls a little fuel here as we made a playoff run to say ‘OK, you deserve to be here,’” Morrison said.
Mission Prep moves on to play Everett Alvarez (15-6-1), of Salinas, on the road Tuesday in the state CIF NorCal Division 4 playoff bracket. The game starts at 5 p.m.
Arroyo Grande moves on to state
The Eagles girls soccer squad will host its first matchup against Eagle Rock (13-1-2).
No. 1 Arroyo Grande (11-9-2) plays Tuesday at 5 p.m. at home after losing 1-0 in the Division 2 soccer semifinal to Independence. The final berth earned them a spot in the state tournament’s Division 4 bracket.
The Eagles beat Ridgeview 3-1, Tulare Western 1-0 and St. Joseph 2-0 before their loss in the title game.
Sophomore Olivia Hunsicker leads Arroyo Grande with 11 goals scored this season. Hunsicker has scored three times in the playoffs thus far.
