On the girls side, Spanish Springs (8-4-2, 7-4-1 High Desert League) was in a must-win situation on Saturday if they hoped to see their season continue. Luckily for Cougar fans, their beloved Purple and Teal pulled out a 2-0 triumph.
Coming into the match, Spanish Springs sat in fourth place while McQueen (6-2-4 HDL) was in second. If Reno won and Spanish Springs lost their respective regular season finales, the Cougars would've been out of the playoffs.
“We've been struggling a little bit this year … It was kind of nice that everybody came together today and passed the ball real well,” Spanish Springs coach Mike Faker said.
The teams battled it out in the sun for 26 minutes before Spanish Springs' Carly Pengelly broke the stalemate. Jessica Ellison passed her the ball up the middle for the assist and Pengelly bashed it into the goal.
In the second half, the Cougars came out strong and Lindsey Pengelly headed a ball at the goal within seconds of the kickoff but the McQueen goalkeeper was able to collect it. Carly Pengelly took another assist from Ellison in the 48th minute for the 2-0 final. Ellison flicked it up to Pengelly, who cut back to her left before the score.
Pengelly led the way for her squad on a hurt foot, in what could have been her final contest for Spanish Springs High School.
“It's really sad but I'm ready to move on and go to a higher level,” said Pengelly, who will be playing college soccer in New York next year.
Spanish Springs is in third place in the HDL and will likely face Sierra League runner-up, Galena, in the first round of the playoffs, which begin Saturday.
“I like that match up,” Faker said. “It's a team that we play well against. There's a few teams in this league that we just don't match up real well with, and I think Galena is one that we do.”
Last year, Spanish Springs lost to South Tahoe in a shootout in the first round of regional play.
Boys
The Cougars struggled early on against McQueen but were able to overcome a lethargic first half for a 3-2 victory.
“It was a good win because we came back from a deficit,” Spanish Springs first-year coach Rob Moreland said. “That showed a lot of composure.”
Spanish Springs had already clinched a spot in the upcoming regional playoffs and is set to be either in third or fourth place depending on the other matches around Reno this weekend.
McQueen (4-6-2 HDL) struck first with a goal in the 15th minute. Spencer Stewart took a pass from the left hand side where he was wide open, giving McQueen the 1-0 advantage.
Spanish Springs (7-4-1 HDL) tied it up early in the second half with a goal by Luis Guzman.
Shortly thereafter, the Cougars took a shot but McQueen capitalized in transition. A shot bounced off Cougars' goalkeeper Eder Zomoza and the Lancers' offense put it in for a 2-1 lead in the 64th minute.
Spanish Springs managed to tie it up again with a score six minutes later thanks to a goal by Irvin Somera.
With roughly two minutes left in the match, Alex Garcia earned the Cougars go-ahead goal on a breakaway play. He got a yellow card immediately after for excessive celebration but still gave the Cougars the one-goal victory.
“These guys play better with pressure,” Moreland said of his squad. “So I think come next week, we're going to do well because there'll be total pressure.”
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