Pitman High varsity girls soccer played to a 2-2 draw against former Central California Conference opponent El Capitan High on Wednesday afternoon from home.
“Two bad plays… I think the girls felt secure and that was not the case,” said Pitman head coach Annabel Perez. “It happened to us against Sierra. We were up 3-0 then all of a sudden they go up 4-3 to win it, so I think the girls start off strong and they start to lean back.”
On Dec. 5, Pitman led Sierra at the half by three goals, but in the second the Pride relaxed and allowed Sierra to notch four goals to win it.
Wednesday’s game was almost the same case, but the defense was able to hold off after just a pair of miscues with the back line.
Against EC on Wednesday, Brooke Rose was the scoring catalyst.
It took less than 10 minutes for Pitman to tack on the first score of the game when Rose found the first of two first-half goals.
By the 15th minute, senior standout Izzy Shallou-Enes was able to assist Rose for the second goal after she was triple teamed and found Rose on the opposite side of the penalty box around 10 yards out. Rose worked around the keeper, placing the ball in the back of the net to go up 2-0.
By the half, Pitman led by two goals.
Once the second half kicked off, EC stepped it up while the Pride seemed a bit relaxed.
EC began to press and pressure and by the 57th minute, the Gauchos found the back of the net on a miscue.
The pressure began to build up and EC once again scored just less than eight minutes later.
Emily Alvarez of Pitman almost found the back of the net on a one-on-one situation with the keeper when there was just two minutes left in regulation.
The keeper made a diving save after the shot was drilled to the far corner.
This kept the game tied at 2-2.
“These girls are very talented and they work well together, our small game is good, we have a few gaps and we have to fix those gaps,” Perez said.
Pitman has outscored their first eight opponents, 18-8.
Their record is now 5-2-1 after Wednesday’s non-league contest.
“I definitely think it is early on and we still have a lot of time and things to learn. I don’t want to use that as an excuse because it is the same team as last year, so they should know,” said Perez. “So, it is about bringing that chemistry back together and fixing the little mistakes and staying organized because we had a couple injuries in the back, which is kind of limiting us from doing what we can, but our big thing is being organized.”
Pitman will next travel to Central Valley High to take on the Hawks at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
