By Vincent Liu
Fortified by a rock-solid defense, with an assist from a rock-hard playing field, the St. Francis High girls soccer team bounced its way back to the top again.
The second-seeded Lancers took advantage of two fortuitous bounces of the ball, both resulting in scores after being misplayed by the opposing goalie, to upset No. 1 Santa Teresa 3-0 last Saturday for the Central Coast Section Division I title.
After winning it all from 1997 through 2000, St. Francis stumbled the next two years and Santa Teresa ascended to the top with back-to-back titles. Last Saturday afternoon, the past caught up with the present and the Lancers (18-1-4) won their record-tying eighth CCS crown.
With both teams playing cautiously in the first half, St. Francis got its first break in the 12th minute off an indirect free kick 30 yards out. After two taps from her teammates, Lauren Tippets slammed a low shot right at Saints goalie Julie Presant. But the ball accelerated on a concrete-like synthetic turf and skipped underneath Presant into the net for an unlikely goal.
The degree of fortuity of that goal was dwarfed by what took place just seconds before the intermission. On a direct free kick, Tippets from 48 yards out chipped a high loft toward the goal too far for her teammate to run under. But Presant hesitated for a moment before coming out and was caught in between hops by the ball, which bounced over her head into the net.
Two bounces. Two misjudgments. Two goals.
The Saints (17-2-3) had dug themselves a hole too deep to climb out from, but to their credit, they didn’t quit. They came out on the attack in the second half with high-arching shots to take advantage of the sun behind them. Despite being marked, their all-league striker Judy Coffman blasted several dangerous shots on goal with her powerful left foot.
The turning point of the match came with 8:30 elapsed in the second half when a shot by Coffman was rebounded into the net by a teammate for an apparent score that would have cut St. Francis’ lead in half. But the goal was nullified by an offside call. An instant TV reply from the Valley Christian press box confirmed it was a correct call.
After dodging the bullet, the Lancers regained their offensive thrust and created several opportunities to ice the contest. Minutes after her hard shot was barely saved by the goalie, Tippets bent a corner kick perfectly to the far side of the goal where Jenna Hamel was waiting unguarded in front of an open net. But instead of heading down on the ball, Hamel popped the ball up weakly over the crossbar. Later, a shot by Lindsay Parker hit the crossbar.
The clincher finally came with 3:47 left on the clock and it was a thing of beauty. Off a left cross from Adrienne Bateson, striker Liz Behlen one-timed a half volley from the far side some 20 yards out, depositing the ball high into the left corner of the net.
The two gift scores notwithstanding, St. Francis had outplayed its opponent and created enough scoring opportunities to win going away.
Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good, but on this day the Lancers were both. They matched speed with the Saints on the ground and controlled the air lanes with superior sizes. Their defense, anchored by Danielle Contro, Julia Gamlen, Christina Gilbert and Hamel, was simply magnificent.
No one appreciated St. Francis’ defenders more than goalie Nora Germano who was not challenged for most of the contest.
“I love our defense; they’re my best friends,” Germano said.
The junior goalkeeper made the biggest save of the game in the first half when she blocked a point-blank shot by Coffman to preserve a 1-0 lead. In the second half, she stopped a breakaway threat with another block outside the penalty area.
Coach John Franco and Tippets were both quick to recognize the Lancers’ defensive effort after the game. It was a memorable beginning for Franco and a glorious ending for Tippets.
After 14 years as assistant coach, Franco became a championship coach in his first season at the helm.
“This is a special feeling, an awesome feeling,” he said.
For senior Tippets, this represents a fitting finish to a career that also began on a championship note as a freshman.
“This one is so much better,” she said. “Going out on top means so much more.”
Tippets, who is headed to Duke in the fall on a soccer scholarship, credited Franco for creating a great chemistry that bonded the team together throughout the season.
“Coach pushed us hard,” she said. “There was no slack, and we were all focused.”
Equally adept with both feet, Tippets credited her father Layne for forcing her to kick with her weak (left) foot when she was 7. With the ability to shoot from both sides, she led the team with 20 goals this season, including six in the three CCS playoff wins.
