Kerman High sophomore goalie helps preserve 2-0 NorCal opening-round win
The fortunes in the CIF Northern California Division IV girls soccer playoffs for Kerman High will rest in the hands of a sophomore goalkeeper in only her second season at the key position.
Yazmine Gastélum came up with a couple of penalty kick stops against Santa María High in a 1-1 (5-3 penalty kicks) victory last Friday for the CIF Central Section Division IV championship.
It didn’t come down to penalty kicks Tuesday evening, but Gastélum stopped some strong shots from visiting Salinas High to help the Lions win, 2-0, in the opening round of the NorCal playoffs.
“It’s one of her best games this season,” said Kerman head coach Rubén Cardona. “I think her best game was in the section final.”
Kerman, which won it’s 15th consecutive game and is now 29-3, jumped out to a quick lead in the 10th minute when senior forward Isabelle Cruz curved in a free kick from 20 yards out for her 46th goal of the season.
Thirteen minutes later, Cruz centered a pass to sophomore Kaylee Rocha that led to another goal and a 2-0 advantage.
Salinas High, however, kept applying the pressure on offense but couldn’t solve the Gastélum’s defense.
“She’s coming into her own and recognizing the shot; and, reacting a lot more faster,” said Cardona of Gastélum.
The win sends fourth-seeded Kerman to Gilroy this Thursday (March 3) to face No. 1 seed Christopher High (12-5-1) in a semifinal.
Gastélum said it was important to get a quick lead.
“For the most part, I feel like we did dominate the game most of the time, but there were a few times where they did get past our defense,” said Gastélum. “But, for the most part, our defense held them up pretty good.”
Gastélum took up goalkeeping duties two years ago when there was an open spot.
“Our team did not have a goalkeeper. I have played in the past when I was younger, so I decided to step up and try it again,” said Gastélum.
Cardona said his team learned plenty from the Salinas game.
“The competition level was 10 times what we faced in our section,” he said. “Salinas’ team is very good. They’re really organized. Hats off to this team.”
Kerman, he said, offset the height advantage by Salinas by “playing a little bit quicker.”
The playoffs, said Cardona, “are icing on the cake.”
“At the same time, our girls are hungry; they’re not satisfied. They want two rings,” he said. “They have been working really hard. They deserve to win the regional.”
Esta historia fue publicada originalmente el 1 de marzo de 2022, 10:39 p. m. with the headline "Kerman High sophomore goalie helps preserve 2-0 NorCal opening-round win."