By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
The notion that a 2-0 advantage is the most precarious lead in soccer proved true Saturday to the benefit of the St. Joseph Academy Bloodhounds.
The Bloodhounds rallied after trailing by two early scores to defeat San Antonio Antonian 3-2 on Anuar Atiye’s golden goal just 24 seconds into the second 10-minute overtime period at Canales Field.
The comeback victory enabled SJA to capture a TAPPS district championship for the second straight year.
The Bloodhounds finished 5-1 in TAPPS district competition, which is the same record as conference rival San Antonio Central Catholic. But SJA claims the crown based on a district goal differential tiebreaker. The Bloodhounds and Buttons split their two regular-season district matchups. Antonian (2-4) finished third in the district.
SJA (16-5-1) now advances to the TAPPS state playoffs, as does Antonian, and will play host to Plano Prestonwood (9-17-2) at 11 a.m. Tuesday.
The second OT had barely begun when SJA’s Mario Garcia made a picture-perfect pass from the midfield to Atiye, who attacked from the left side and quickly brought the ball in to create a 1-on-1 situation with the Antonian goalkeeper. As soon as Atiye saw the goalkeeper was committed to not moving from his spot in the center of the goal, the senior midfielder on the left wing sent a roller to the far right corner of the net from about eight yards out.
It was a shot beyond the goalkeeper’s reach, and he could only stand there and watch as the ball trickled into the goal, just inside the right post.
“I was just waiting for it to see what it would do,” Atiye said of his game-winning shot.
“It was a great pass from my teammate Mario Garcia,” added Atiye, who scored two goals in the game. “I was nervous and I just wanted it to go in. However it was going to go, (I wasn’t sure for a moment, but then) I was excited because it went in.
“It feels awesome (to help us win). We were able to come back as a team because we are very united. It turned out to be a great day. I’m so proud of all my teammates.”
Earlier though, it was the kind of horrific start for the Bloodhounds that all soccer teams dread.
Just 3 1/2 minutes into the contest, the ball bounced off the leg of an SJA defender situated in the goalmouth and went into the Bloodhounds’ net for an “autogol.” Fifteen minutes later, Antonian’s Donnie Rivero dribbled in down the middle, the SJA goalkeeper came charging out and Rivero chipped a lob shot over him that bounced into the goal for a 2-0 lead.
At that point with 21 1/2 minutes remaining in the first half and down by a pair of goals, things were looking pretty grim for the Bloodhounds.
“I thought we started out flat, and it doesn’t help to give up an ‘autogol,’” SJA coach Tino Villarreal said. “That was something that lifted Antonian’s spirits and put us under (even) more pressure. I (had) told our players not to play with pressure, but it’s tough to do when you’re playing for the district championship in front of a big crowd. Then we were down 1-0 and we made even more mistakes.
“At halftime, it was a very intense talk on my part about playing like a champion and displaying the heart of a champion,” Villarreal added. “Champions know how to control their emotions and know how to have ice run through their veins. I told them if they really wanted it, they were going to get it, and I think they woke up.”
Regarding the thought that 2-0 is the most dangerous lead in soccer, Villarreal said, “Absolutely, tell me about it. We were at Central Catholic last weekend and up 3-1, which is really the same thing (and we lost 4-3 on a golden goal in OT).”
The Bloodhounds began their comeback with a goal by Gerardo Moses from about 15 yards out on the left side with 26 minutes left in regulation. SJA came close to scoring several times immediately after that, but it wasn’t until Atiye sent a deflected shot into the goal from approximately eight yards away on the left side that the Bloodhounds got their equalizer. The goal tied the match at 2 with fewer than nine minutes remaining in regulation.
Atiye’s first goal came after teammate Manuel Guerra had taken a shot from the right side that was deflected by the Antonian goalkeeper. The putback by Atiye further raised the Bloodhounds’ hopes and set the stage for his game-winning tally in OT.
“When you’re down and you score to make it 2-1, you gain a lot of momentum and the other team loses a lot of momentum,” Villarreal said. “The opponent starts feeling the pressure. I thought we did a very good job today (of coming back), but hats off to Antonian. They gave us a really good game. They always do. We’re just lucky and happy to get out of here with another win.”
When the Apaches and Bloodhounds played for the first time this season back in December in San Antonio, SJA prevailed 2-1.
“Hopefully this doesn’t detract from us going forward and how we do in the playoffs,” Antonian coach Jason Anno said. “It was a good game. St. Joseph played well. They knew what was on the line, and I think that’s really what put them over the top. They’re a good team.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess.