Staff reports
SAN ANTONIO — The St. Joseph Academy Bloodhounds are returning to the TAPPS state semifinals in soccer for the second straight year.
Gerardo Moses scored from close range with four minutes remaining in the first half Saturday to lift the Bloodhounds to a 1-0 TAPPS quarterfinal victory over Fort Worth Nolan.
“I thought it was the best game we’ve played this season,” SJA coach Tino Villarreal said. “At this stage (of the playoffs), the team making the least amount of mistakes and the team with a little bit of luck is going to win. We had both today.”
Saturday’s victory at San Antonio Central Catholic’s Bob Benson 1966 Stadium advances the Bloodhounds (18-5-1) to a semifinal matchup against Addison Trinity Christian (18-4-2).
The game will be played at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Bob Benson Stadium. Trinity Christian defeated Dallas Bishop Dunne 2-0 on Saturday in another TAPPS quarterfinal.
The Bloodhounds’ winning goal came about after SJA had taken a corner kick and the ball was cleared by Nolan, but it came to SJA’s Gerardo Elizondo, who passed it over to Andres Rico. Rico then advanced the ball from the left side and centered it into Moses, who was near the left post. Moses redirected the rolling ball into the net off the side of his foot to provide the Bloodhounds with the only goal they needed.
There were some anxious moments for the Bloodhounds before and after Moses’ goal.
“If we had a question mark about our team coming into the season, it was a question about our defense, where we were replacing three of four players (not including the goalkeeper) from last year,” Villarreal said. “Our defense came out big today and definitely did a good job of being on point. It was hectic, but our defense came through.”
Highlighting the defensive effort, Villarreal said, was junior goalkeeper Mario Ramirez, who finished with multiple saves. They included what the SJA coach called a pair of “super saves” that took place during each half.
“Mario went flying through the air (to make a save) just when it looked as though the ball was about to go in,” Villarreal said. “He was a first-team all-state selection last year, and he showed today that he deserves that honor.”
Down the stretch, the Bloodhounds came close to scoring twice against Nolan (11-8-1).
With 18 minutes left, a free kick taken by Luis Amaro hit the crossbar, bounced downward and then went away from the goal. Then with 10 minutes remaining, a header by Jose Kauachi off a corner kick also hit the crossbar and was cleared out of the box.
One year ago, the Bloodhounds reached the TAPPS semifinals and lost 1-0 to Houston Awty International in Corpus Christi to end the season 16-4-2.
“There were a lot of tears, disappointment and broken hearts when we lost (to Awty) last year,” Villarreal said. “The juniors then who are now our seniors were saying (after the loss), ‘Next year, it’s our turn.’ I’ve reminded them of how bad they felt after last year’s setback and that we need to play our very best to avoid that feeling again.
“The team’s morale is high, and the guys are excited to be playing in the final four (again),” Villarreal added. “I want to say we had 15 alumni or so who played soccer for St. Joseph at today’s game. They were there cheering us on, and that meant a lot. They’re now attending colleges in the San Antonio and Austin areas. They want to see the St. Joseph soccer program reach a new level.”