Burlingame soccer survives San Mateo

"Sure it's a win and we'll take it," De Rosa said. "But the girls know they could've played so much better. I'd like to think that good teams find a way to win when they're not at their best. It can get dangerous when you don't capitalize on your opportunities. It was definitely frustrating today and there's no doubt we're going to have to focus and pick up our effort if we want to contend for a title."

After squandering several golden scoring chances, Burlingame finally connected in the 50th minute. Kelli Howe sent a perfect pass to the middle of the penalty box to an onrushing Katie Morales. The sophomore then delivered a right-footed, one-timer into the lower right hand corner for a 1-0 lead.

In the 66th minute, Kristi Morales found Howe wide open at the top of the box. Howe settled the ball down before spinning and rifling a laser above the arms of Bearcats goalkeeper Justine Morey.

Burlingame peppered the San Mateo goal early and often, with Howe doing most of the attacking. She registered a game-high six shots on goal. She also slotted a nice pass to Kelly Koval midway through the first half that almost resulted in a goal. Koval drilled a shot that landed just under the top crossbar before bouncing back into play.

Without its top two offensive threats — flashy forwards Jennifer Lu and Skai Kang — San Mateo struggled to put together any scoring chances. The Bearcats were impressive in the preseason, having defeated the likes of Capuchino and Hillsdale and tying red-hot Menlo School.

"We're trying to get healthy to put together a run," San Mateo coach Victor Montoya said. "The girls are trying hard and they're playing with good spirits. Right now we're moving around a lot of players to get the right combinations out there."

Montoya pointed to the likes of Cynthia Martinez, Sarah Levy and Rachel Morin as players who will be counted upon to lead the team to a top -four league finish. Paola Alunni displayed hustle and grit in winning a lot of 50-50 balls in the midfield.

However, this game was all Burlingame. In addition to Howe and the Morales sisters, the Panthers were sparked by the play of Ashley Benson, Sibel Slavsky, Makenna Chambers, Amanda Goll, Eva Maier and Siobhan Brosnan. Burlingame goalkeeper Amanda Zelnik has done such a good job filling in for the injured Marie Torres that De Rosa feels confident about playing both in crunch time.

"It's a nice luxury to have," De Rosa said. "Amanda is smart, has soft hands and is quick on her feet. We're going to be better off having depth at the goalie position and it should help us in the long run."