After Klamath Union’s (7-1-1, 3-1-0 Skyline Conference) 2-0 win over Mazama Monday, Pelicans head coach Trevor Petersen expressed dissatisfaction with his team’s failure to convert on several scoring chances–something that had also been an issue in their previous game, a 1-0 loss to Phoenix.
“That’s got to change going forward,” Petersen said.
It did change Thursday at Modoc Field, and the result was a historic win that may have also changed the trajectory of the Skyline Conference championship race.
Junior Caleb Morton slotted a turnaround shot into the bottom corner of the net in the 74th minute to break a 1-1 deadlock and give Klamath Union its first win over Henley (7-2-1, 3-1-0) since 2013. The Pelicans had lost their last 20 games against the Hornets.
“It means everything,” Morton said. “I couldn’t have done it without my team. They set me up perfectly.”
Henley took a 1-0 lead in the 6th minute when sophomore Luke Balzotti went for goal on a deep free kick and the ball bounced off the raised hands of Klamath Union sophomore Emanuel Garcia and in off the bottom of the crossbar. Less than one minute later, the Pelicans evened the score as Morton sent a perfect pass to classmate Omar Garcia and watched him beat Hornets sophomore Ivan Garcia one-on-one.
“We were ready,” Petersen said. “We talked about it. We said, ‘If we go down, we’re coming back stronger,’ so we were ready for that.”
After the exchange of goals, the game settled into a closely contested and highly physical matchup. Possession and scoring chances were nearly equal for the rest of the first half and most of the second. Emanuel Garcia and Ivan Garcia rebounded nicely from their early concessions to make some difficult saves, including on close-range shots. Multiple players on both teams were shown yellow cards.
Klamath Union began to seize control around the 65th minute, keeping pressure on Henley and creating multiple chances in the box before Morton’s game-winner. The Pelicans ended up with three corner kicks–all between the 67th and 71st minutes–to the Hornets’ one.
“We’re not the biggest, but we have the endurance,” Morton said. “We’re always able to finish the game strong. Usually we have more energy towards the end, so we use that to our advantage and we just keep attacking.”
Klamath Union jumped from No. 11 to No. 6 in the OSAA 4A computer rankings after Thursday’s game and moved into a three-way tie for first place in the Skyline Conference with Henley, which dropped from No. 3 to No. 4, and No. 8 Phoenix. A Hornets win would have given them a one-game hold on first place halfway through league play.
“It was a good game,” Henley head coach Lupe Gonzales said. “They had a little bit more desire than we did…They earned it.
“I think we can adjust from this. I think we’ll be fine.”
Both teams play at 6:30 p.m. Monday; Klamath Union hosts No. 10 Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian (5-5-0, 1-3-0), while Henley hosts Phoenix (6-1-2, 3-1-0).
Other games
Mazama 2, Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian 1 (Girls)
Like their Canal Bowl rivals, Mazama (4-4-0, 2-2-0 Skyline Conference) overcame a 1-0 deficit to claim a historic win at home, beating Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian (4-4-1, 1-2-1) for the first time since 2014.
The Vikings had lost 18 straight games to the Mustangs, who began a co-op with New Hope Christian last season.
“The girls played so well tonight,” Mazama head coach Kelly Ruiz said. “They kept spirits up even after Hidden Valley scored.”
The Mustangs–who entered the game ranked No. 8 in the OSAA 4A computer rankings–took the lead in the 20th minute, and the Vikings equalized in the 33rd when sophomore Laila Stone scored on a corner kick from senior Ashlyn Smith. Freshman Kally Porto scored the winning goal on another Smith corner kick in the 65th minute.
Junior Addison Garlock made three saves in net for Mazama, which outshot Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian 8-7. The Vikings had eight corner kicks to the Mustangs’ two.
“Tonight our girls shined and showed how tough they can be and what they are capable of,” Ruiz said.
Mazama travels to Phoenix (2-7-1, 0-4-0) at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 17. Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian hosts No. 9 Klamath Union (6-2-1, 2-1-1) at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian 6, Mazama 0 (Boys)
Mazama (2-6-0, 0-4-0 Skyline Conference) suffered its fourth straight loss to No. 10 Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian (5-5-0, 1-3-0) in Grants Pass.
The Vikings host No. 8 Phoenix (6-1-2, 3-1-0) at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 17. The Mustangs travel to No. 6 Klamath Union (7-1-1, 3-1-0) at 6:30 p.m. Monday.
Tulelake 4, Modoc 1
Tied 1-1 at halftime, Tulelake (15-4-0, 10-2-0 Shasta Cascade League) scored three second-half goals to finish a four-game road trip with a win.
Modoc (9-10-0, 7-4-0) opened the scoring with a header before senior Melvyn Flores tied the game about 15 minutes later. Senior Anthony Loza scored twice and freshman Alex Garcia scored once in the second half. Junior Ivan Jaime made three saves.
“We tend to struggle getting into games, and today was no different,” Tulelake head coach Miguel Navarro said. “We started off slow, and it took us some time to find our rhythm, but once we got the ball moving, our quick one-two touches really started clicking.
“It wasn’t our best game, and the players know that…Still, we’ll take it one game at a time and keep working with what we’ve got.”
Loza has now scored 24 goals this season, the most in the NSCIF and third most in California, according to MaxPreps data.
Tulelake hosts Weed (4-7-0, 4-5-0) at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. Modoc travels to Etna (0-10-0, 0-10-0) at 1 p.m. Saturday.