NATHANIEL MATA | THE MONITOR
MISSION — Sharyland Pioneer goalie Yulissa Acuña only faced one quality chance in the first half against Sharyland High. She was much busier but up to the task in the second half, extending the game to penalty kicks, where the Diamondbacks prevailed 4-2 after a scoreless regulation in the meeting of undefeated teams.
The Rattlers’ onslaught of offense after the halftime break was not a surprise. As time ticked away in the final 40 minutes, the pressure seemed ready to boil over into a goal, but the visiting Diamondbacks (5-0, 14 points) didn’t break.
In the first half, Pioneer’s Nikki Cuellar made plays and found attackers. The best chance for the Diamondbacks was a loose ball that was a light tap from being sent home for a goal. Sharyland’s Elise Townsend had other ideas, clearing the ball.
The catalyst to Sharyland’s late attack was the duo of freshman Xochitl Nguma and senior forward Kaitie Watson.
Watson was as dangerous as advertised. Entering play Friday, she had 10 goals in just four district games. Nguma was crucial in getting the ball to Watson, finding her a few times in scoring position or at the start of a run.
Acuña, a senior, has been on the varsity squad since her freshman season and was prepared for everything Watson threw at her.
“I knew what she does, so I told my defense what to do, and then I knew where she was shooting, and I would cover that spot,” Acuña said. “It’s a challenging job, but I was able to accomplish it, thank God.”
With 24 minutes to play, Watson sprinted down the right side of the field, set her feet and picked her spot in close. Her try was denied by Acuña, who had already dropped to her knees, selling out to make the save.
The goalkeeper said she went down “too early,” but the save was key all the same. Watson and the Rattlers sent more attackers forward late as they pushed for all three available points.
Through all the tense moments, Acuña was pleased to see more action and become an active part of the game in the second half.
“I was able to move my feet more, be more focused,” Acuña said. “My defense also did a great job. They stopped a bunch of balls.”
The tension was thick in penalty kicks, but the tone was set when Townsend was denied on her attempt to beat Acuña to her right. The Pioneer keeper said penalty kicks were something she focused on improving during tournament play.
The Diamondbacks left room for the Rattlers to tie the game when Lauren Guerra missed off the left post.
The attempt from Sharyland’s Mariana Barragan smashed off the crossbar and out, setting up the game-winner for Amanda Tyrrell, who made no mistake.
“Our goalie did amazing. I’m so proud of her, especially in the shootout,” Tyrrell said. “We knew how Kaitie played. We knew that she was going to take shots, so we made sure that we were always going to stop her, no matter what.”
Tyrrell was happy that her team pulled out a win despite getting the worse of the run of play in the second half, proving the group can earn points in different ways.
“No matter what, if we’re not going to have possession or are going to have possession, we’re going to make sure we get the win, because we know we’re the better team at the end of it,” Tyrrell said.
Pioneer coach J.J. Lopez attributed the second-half play to adjustments Sharyland High coach Mario Ribera made to create more offense.
“We thought we were doing well, so we weren’t going to change a whole lot,” Lopez said. “They made the adjustments because obviously, they felt we were getting the run of play. In soccer, you just have to adjust on the fly, because there’s no timeouts.”
Lopez noted the intensity that seems to resonate around the district rivalry.
“Any time you come and play here at Sharyland, you know they’re going to have a big crowd. They take a lot of pride in all their athletics,” Lopez said. “We like to think our parents take a lot of pride, too, and the atmosphere feels like a playoff game every time we face them. These are the type of games that prepare you for the postseason.”
Both teams entered the game with identical 4-0 records in 31-5A play. With the win, the Diamondbacks have accumulated 14 points while the Rattlers are a point behind with 13.
“If you can’t get them in regulation, it’s important just to get them in PKs so we go a point ahead of them,” Tyrrell said. “We’re going to make sure to beat them in regulation next round.”
nmata@themonitor