The Friday evening matchup between the Aragon boys varsity soccer team and the Hillsdale Knights had postseason qualifications on the line. The game was a must-win for the Dons in order to keep their Central Coast Section (CCS) playoff hopes alive. With Hillsdale already leading the division, the matchup played out to be a tightly-contested Aragon-Hillsdale rivalry game between the top two teams of the Ocean division on Feb. 20. Yet, at the sound of the final buzzer, a final score of 0-0 handed the Dons their second tie in their last three games and effectively ended their season short of playoff contention.
Nonetheless, the many fans from both sides packing the stands for the inaugural soccer quad were able to catch a strong first half from the Dons. Dominating a majority of the time of possession, Aragon was able to create many chances for themselves on offense, while also limiting Hillsdale’s counterattack and keeping their offense stymied.
Aragon came close to scoring with a one-on-one breakaway opportunity from junior midfielder Victor Lopez at the nine-minute mark and a free kick attempt by senior forward Ricardo Villasenor that just slightly missed the net.
In the second half, Hillsdale’s offense gained momentum, pulling themselves to a handful of chances at a goal before they were thwarted by senior goalkeeper Julio Garcia-Salazar.
Meanwhile, Aragon’s offense predominantly followed suit with its first half performance. The team struggled to direct the ball into the net; instead, its attempts were quickly shut down by the opposing goalkeeper, who found success with stopping Aragon’s good looks.
After the conclusion of the back and forth second half, the score still stood at 0-0. The tie hands the Dons their second consecutive draw and third tie in the last four contests.
After a hard fought season their return to the Ocean division, that also included a five-game win streak early in the season, the team finished 10-4-6 overall and 7-2-5 in league play.
