Palo Verde boys soccer advances to Southern League title game — PHOTOS

The No. 2-seeded Panthers pulled out a 1-0 win over No. 6 Eldorado on Thursday to advance to Saturday’s final. Palo Verde’s defense, which has been stout all season, was terrific again to help the team move on.

“We’ve been strong defensively all year and that’s what we’ve been riding on, especially in the second half of the year,” Panthers coach Scott Hunt said.

Palo Verde got on the board early, as senior Trevon Aytch scored midway through the first half to put his team ahead.

Eldorado played with desperation in the second half, generating a lot of possessions and creating multiple chances. The Firehawks had four shots on goal after halftime and almost tied the game twice.

Eldorado’s Rogelio Berto had a great chance at an equalizer 18 minutes into the second half after deflecting a ball played by Palo Verde goaltender Landon Blanchard. Panthers defender Ben Legrand slid in at the last moment to deny Berto.

Sophomore Aiden Villaneueva rang a shot off the crossbar on a set piece for Eldorado 10 minutes later.

Palo Verde’s defense held on from there to set up a rematch of last year’s 5A Southern League title game against Coronado at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Cougars advanced with a 5-0 home win against Western on Thursday.

Palo Verde and Coronado played each other twice this season. The Cougars won both times and will host Saturday’s game. Both teams will advance to the state tournament regardless of the outcome. The winner will be the No. 1 seed. The loser will be the No. 2 seed and play the Northern champion.

“Saturday is a big test for our team. Coronado is one of the best high school teams I’ve seen, and I’ve been doing this for a long time,” Hunt said. “Coronado has a lot of firepower, so we’re going to have to play our best.”