Crystal into Nor Cal final

Shotts, a senior midfielder/striker — who played for Crystal his freshman season, missed his sophomore season with injury and played club soccer with the De Anza Force his junior year — notched a second-half hat trick after setting up the Gryphons’ first goal as second-seeded Crystal rolled past No. 6 Nipomo-San Luis Obispo County 5-0 in a CIF Nor Cal Division V semifinal game Thursday in Hillsborough.

The win moves Crystal (20-2-2) into the DV Nor Cal championship game against top-seeded Branson (12-6-3) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Novato High School. The Bulls shut out No. 4 Fremont-Oakland, 3-0.

“It was a fun game,” Shotts said. “The whole season has been fun.”

It appeared early on that the Gryphons were on top of their game, as a Shotts cross just two minutes into the game kicked clear by the Nipomo goalkeeper. In the third minute, a Kristian Bisgaard header off a Jimmy Naylor throw-in was cleared off the goal line by a Titans defender.

In the 11th minute, the Gryphons broke through, with Shotts’ trademark hustle, speed and talent getting Crystal on the scoreboard. He chased down and won a ball just past the midfield stripe and turned upfield before looking up and curling a perfect ball to the far left post to an unmarked Ben Fair, who was making a weak side run.

A pair of defenders collapsed on Fair and he poked a pass back across the face of the goal, where Danté Martin was crashing. Martin then slid into a shot and the first goal of the game.

The Gryphons continued to press the attack. Fair played another cross into the box, but this time Martin’s one-timer was pawed away by the Nipomo goalkeeper in the 13th minute. Martin was hacked down just outside the penalty box in the 20th minute, but the Gryphons came up empty. Another Martin attack went by the wayside and another Bisgaard header off another long Naylor throw-in was also saved.

Despite dominating the action, Crystal’s margin was still razor thin and that was brought into sharp focus when Nipomo’s Christian Rivera sent a quick through ball into the box to a slicing Chase Myers. But his momentum was taking him away from the goal, so he didn’t get a lot on his close range shot, as Crystal goalkeeper Max Slavet made the save.

“[Nipomo hasn’t] played a team like us,” said Crystal head coach Roberto Miranda. “It was tough for them to find a way through (our defense).”

And the Gryphons kept coming, offensively.

“One thing I told the boys at the beginning of the season, every attack into the box is like a drop of water into a cup,” Miranda said. “Eventually, it’s going to burst.”

The Gryphons finally got some breathing room in the 35th minute when they earned another throw-in deep in Titans territory. The ball fell to Evan Collins, who scored the game-winner in the CCS championship game last Saturday, and he sent the ball to the front of the goal where it clipped the heel of a Nipomo defender and deflected into the net for an own-goal and a 2-0 Crystal lead at the break.

In the second half, Shotts took over, running right at the Titans. Just two minutes into the second half, Shotts made it 3-0. Fair won the ball in the midfield and quickly sent a through ball right through the heart of the Nipomo defense, that likes to play an offside trap. Shotts, however, split a pair of defenders, touched the ball into space and then buried a shot in the far left corner.

Six minutes later, he was at it again. The Titans had earned a free kick 40 yards from the Crystal goal, but Naylor one-timed a clearance way upfield. Again, Shotts burned the Nipomo back line, beating three defenders in the box and depositing his second goal in as many shots for a 4-0 Gryphons’ lead in the 48th minute.

At that point, it was about getting out of the game healthy. Martin didn’t play in the second half and there was a moment of concern when Shotts and a Nipomo defender clashed heads during a challenge, forcing Shotts to the sideline for precautionary reasons.

He stayed out for about 10 minutes before returning for the final 15 and he picked up right where he left off. In the 75th minute, Shotts simply bulled his way through the defense to win a loose ball and then slotted it home for his third goal of the half and a 5-0 lead.

“He brings up the level of play of the team, for sure,” Miranda said. “Today, [we] were flying.”

Shotts had a chance at a fourth goal minutes later, but was denied.

“I always want to play,” Shotts said about being reinserted into a game that had all but been decided. “[Nipomo’s] high defense line made it dangerous (for the Crystal attack).”

And now the Gryphons’ dream season continues as they are one win away from playing in one of the first-ever state championship games and two wins away from a state title.

And at this point of the season, the Gryphons are only concerned with themselves.

“We focus on ourselves to be the best we can be,” Shotts said. “I’m really proud of the team. Everybody works their hardest all the time.”