By Noah Miyamae
Assoc. Sports Editor
Photos by Hana Tyszka
The boys’ varsity soccer team tied with San Marino by a score of 2-2 at home on Friday, January 29. This tie brings the team to a 1-4-1 league record and 3-8-2 overall.
Kick off marked the start of a close fought match between both sides. South Pas and San Marino shared possession and neither side had a very close scoring opportunity. However, San Marino got on the board first with a header over the keeper to make the score 1-0. San Marino would add to its lead on a goal on defensive miscommunication to make the score 2-0. The Titan striker maneuvered past the defenders with speed and shot it past the goalie. Sophomore striker Jack Renken had a notable opportunity off of a breakaway, but the shot was off target. Sophomore midfielder David Choi followed up with a shot of his own that narrowly prevented South Pas from earning its first goal.
The second half was similar to the first for the most part. The teams continued to battle for scoring opportunities and neither side could break away with the game. South Pas started to pass more in this half as junior midfielder Mathew Kramsch, senior midfielder Seiji Sasaki, and Choi kept the ball out of Titan hands with skillful communication and ball handling. The game continued as such until the remaining five minutes. During this time, senior striker James Tulin headed the ball in on a scrappy play to make the score 2-1. Soon after, senior midfielder Oskar Hernandez would erase the deficit with a nice finish against a lone San Marino defender to make the score 2-2. The match would conclude at this score as both teams could not capitalize during crunch time.
“This was a great comeback for the team,” junior Max Amido said, “We would have like to win, but it was very promising to see the team not give up and fight until the end.”
The Tiger squad will try to carry the momentum from this game into its next match against Blair on Wednesday, February 3 as the visiting team.
