The dreams of a repeat remain alive for Hilmar High’s girls soccer team.
On Tuesday afternoon, the top-seeded Lady ‘Jackets defeated No. 5 Argonaut (15-9-2) by a 3-0 score in the semifinal match of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division V tournament. It was a rematch of last year’s section championship game in which Hilmar won 2-0.
The girls in green, now 16-5-4 overall, will clash with No. 3 Liberty Ranch Hawks of Galt (14-7-2) at 3 p.m. Saturday from Cosumnes River College in Sacramento with the 2025 blue banner on the line.
“To go to Sacramento two years in a row, play for another section championship is amazing,” said Hilmar head coach Guy Bettencourt. “Just amazing.”
Bettencourt also described sophomore striker Raylynn Mendoza as amazing after she scored in the second straight game. She used her speed to get past Argonaut defenders as they chased her from nearly midfield before firing the ball off the hands of goalkeeper Makayla Davis and into the net to give the Yellowjackets a 1-0 after 11 minutes of play.
The Mustangs ramped up their offensive attack from that point on, using the outside speed of senior Jenna Critchfield and sophomores Amy Hauser and Darci Woods to push the ball into Hilmar territory on multiple occasions. But on their home field, the defensive unit of junior Addie Bello and seniors Lilly Brewer, Teygan Horstmeier and Finley Rosa, consistently kicked the ball towards the midfield each time Argonaut threatened outside of the box to prevent any real scoring threats.
Giving the Yellowjackets some breathing room was junior Alyssa Colston, who rebounded a free kick from Horstmeier and knocked in the ball for a goal in the 47th minute. Colston struck again six minutes later when she found herself with the ball in the penalty box, and when a trio of Argonaut defenders couldn’t crash in on her fast enough, sailed the ball into the top left corner of the net.
“I just think, if the ball times, get it in the back of the net no matter what,” Colston said. “I just do everything I can to try and get the ball in. We literally just throw our bodies out there, try to get to a good spot and just hope it goes in, and it definitely worked in our favor today.”
Colston exited the game midway through the half after receiving a second yellow card, each shown to her after foul calls. There were five total yellow cards on Hilmar — none for extracurricular activity or bad sportsmanship. Although they disagreed on the calls, Colston is beginning to embrace their reputation as a physical team that isn’t fazed by opponents despite being a small school of over 100 years tucked in rural Merced County.
“Our team is definitely, as you can tell, a very physical team. We do not back down,” she said. “If someone's running at us, we don't just back away, we stay there. I think that's why we get so many calls on us, because we give it back. Physicality is never really a problem for our team. We're always aggressive and we always just push back.
“We're so excited to be able to have that chance to go back-to-back, especially for Hilmar and for how small our town is. To do that would be insane, but we're really excited for the challenge.”
Liberty Ranch is a challenge that Argonaut also took on throughout the regular season, as they each play in the Sierra Valley Conference. They split the season series, with the Mustangs winning 3-1 on Dec. 12 and the Hawks winning 2-1 on Jan. 29.
The Hawks advanced to Saturday’s final with a 2-0 win at No. 2 Summerville on Thursday night.
“We’re going to need that same defensive effort on Saturday,” Bettencourt said. “The difference between this year’s team and last year is that I have depth now… I was able to get every player in the game today, and all year, it goes a long way to give some of the girls rest and get fresh legs in there.
“I’m so, so proud of these girls and so happy we have a chance at another blue banner.”
