3A BOYS SOCCER: Western capitalizes on miscue for overtime victory over Tech

Western boys soccer coach Kory Pippin was mentally scanning his lineup, thinking of which five of his players would take penalty kicks in a shootout against Tech in the Class 3A Southern Region quarterfinal on Tuesday afternoon at Bettye Wilson Park.

David Ginsburg ensured there were no penalty kicks.

Western’s senior striker took advantage of a bobble by Roadrunners goalie Kenny Flores and finished from point-blank range to lift the Warriors to a 2-1 double-overtime victory and a berth in the regional semifinals on Thursday.

Western players rushed and tackled Ginsburg in celebration as Flores laid motionless on the pitch a mere few feet away while a few of his teammates sobbed nearby.

“I just saw the ball bounce over my teammate,” Ginsburg said. “I ran toward the keeper. He let go of the ball. I just saw an opening.”

Pippin acknowledged there was a little bit of luck involved in Western’s victory but was unapologetic for how it happened, especially because the Warriors (14-6-2) played a man down for most of the game.

Western’s Juan Estrada was assessed a red card in the opening minutes, and Tech’s Joel Velazquez converted the ensuing penalty kick to give the Roadrunners (9-94) an early 1-0 advantage.

The Warriors were ready, though, thanks to some timely preparation by Pippin, who centered Monday’s practice around 10-on-11 situations.

“Yesterday morning, I woke up and I started talking to our captains … We said ‘What happens if we go a man down early?’” he said. “We worked on it for an hour and a half. It was trying to put a game plan together just in case. For it to happen like that blows my mind.”

Western worked its way to a few first-half chances and remained aggressive in the second half. Finally, its aggression paid off and Juan Arredondo-Alvarez was rewarded with a free kick, which he buried midway through the second half to tie the game.

Tech had a couple late scoring opportunities in regulation, but the Warriors’ defense held strong and forced overtime.

Neither team scored in the first extra session, setting the stage for the second overtime and Ginsburg’s heroics and sending Western to the semifinals for a date with Del Sol (13-0-2) at 4 p.m. on Thursday.

“It was tough but we did it,” Ginsburg said. “We wanted it. All the seniors, we knew we didn’t want to go home. We had to win this game and we won it.”

Chaparral 1, Desert Pines 0 — Omar Miranda converted a penalty kick with about four minutes left in regulation to lift the Cowboys over the Jaguars in the Class 3A Southern Region quarterfinals.

“Truly the game was flat even. You might even say they had a couple of the better opportunities,” Chaparral coach Eric Rolwing said. “My boys dug deep.”

Miranda shook four defenders and was fouled in the penalty box to set up the game-winning score. Cowboys goalkeeper keeper Juan Romero had six saves in the shutout.

Chaparral (15-7-2) plays Sunrise Mountain (15-0) in the semifinals at 6 p.m. on Thursday.

Desert Pines fell to 7-6-3.

Sunrise Mountain 7, Virgin Valley 0 — Musio Jimenez-Vazquez and Jose Arreola scored two goals apiece in the Miners’ victory over the Bulldogs in the Class 3A Southern Region quarterfinals.

“We’ve just been putting in work,” Sunrise Mountain coach Brett Underwood said. “I’ve had teams that have had more talent and I’ve had teams that have done a lot of hard work. But there’s something special about this group.”

Jonso Jimenez-Vasquez, Caesar Ortiz and Luis Luna added goals for the Miners. Goalkeeper Marcos Plata recorded four saves in the shutout.

Virgin Valley finished 3-13-1.

Del Sol 6, Mojave 0 — Diego Nieves scored twice, and teammates Diego Flores-Diaz, Erik Serrano, Sergio Calderon and Daniel Barajas each added a goal as the Dragons cruised past the Rattlers in the Class 3A Southern Region quarterfinals.

“I feel good. They earned it,” Dragons coach John Britt said. “I’m proud of my guys. They’re really maturing … I told them at the beginning of the game, have fun and enjoy the moment.”

Jesus Gallardo posted the shutout.

Mojave finished 8-11-1.