Hillsdale opens Ocean play with hard-fought win

Hillsdale scored in the opening 10 minutes and then made it stand up over the final 70 minutes to post a 1-0 win.

“Lately, that’s been our first half. It was like that against Sequoia, it was like that against Burlingame,” said Hillsdale head coach Jaime Gomez, as his squad beat both those Bay Division teams 1-0 with first-half goals.

It wasn’t for a lack of trying that the Knights didn’t win by multiple goals. Hillsdale (1-0 PAL Ocean, 8-1-1 overall) had three dangerous crosses in the opening minutes of the game and it felt like it was only a matter of time before the Knights found the back of the net.

Which they did in the 10th. Moments after Christopher Lopez could not find space to get off a shot, San Mateo appeared to clear the ball out of danger — but chopped down Hillsdale’s Jaxon Bunch in the process, earning a free kick for the Knights 21 yards from goal.

Aiden Reyes stepped up and curled a shot around the San Mateo defensive wall and into the upper left corner of the goal for a spectacular 1-0 lead.

It was just the precursor of an opening 40 minutes that saw the Knights get off 15 shots, with six of them on frame. But they couldn’t add to their lead.

“In open play, we’re struggling to put the ball in the net,” Gomez said.

Two minutes after the goal, the San Mateo goalkeeper struggled with a Bunch header off a throw-in deep in San Mateo territory.

About 10 minutes later, it was the Hillsdale defense that was getting into the offense. In the 20th minute, left back Anthony Pozzobon sent a long ball up the left flank that found Bunch in stride. He carried it to the top of the San Mateo penalty box, but pulled his shot wide.

Minutes later, it was center back Luke Lawton who sent a long ball up front to Bunch, who sent a cross to the front of the goal, but Sineth Andrabadu guided his shot wide.

There was Bunch failing to sweep in a goal in the 28th minute; in the 29th minute, San Mateo defender Ali Garcia Santiago cleared a ball off the goal line in the 31st and Andrabadu, again, came up empty after three cracks it in the 35th minute.

“In the first half, we created a lot of chances,” Gomez said. “We wanted that extra goal.”

The Knights continued to apply heavy pressure in the opening minutes of the second half, earning a free kick just a minute after the break. From 46 yards out, Lawton put a shot on goal that was punched clear by Bearcats goalkeeper Aneesh Ketkar. But Hillsdale’s Carson Levy was there for the rebound, trying a side volley that was on goal, but was pushed aside by Ketkar, who finished with seven saves for the game.

Hillsdale could not convert on a pair of corner kicks in the 42nd and 43rd minutes, and another Lawton free kick was just a bit high in the 48th minute.

But San Mateo (0-1, 2-8) weathered the storm. The Bearcats started to gain more possession of the ball and they did a much better job cutting off those crosses that seemed to come nonstop in the opening half of play.

“We couldn’t start our planned 11,” said San Mateo head coach Matt Shea. “We got them playing together in the second half. When we’re organized and ready, we can hang with anybody.”

In the 46th minute, Edy Perez Mayen won a ball near midfield, making a long run into the Hillsdale penalty box. But he could never shake the defender on his shoulder, who eventually won the ball back and made a back pass to goalkeeper Emi Lopez, who cleared the ball away.

In the 52nd minute, San Mateo’s Thomas Navarro Castilla attempted a shot from 35 yards out that was on goal — but right to Lopez for the save. A Bearcats’ free kick from their own half of the field resulted in a scramble in front of the Hillsdale net in the 56th minute. And another free kick from 40 yards out was about two feet too high in the 71st.

“[San Mateo] threw numbers up,” Gomez said. “But we’ve been able to close out tight games against good teams.”

The Knights came up empty on another couple of attempts in the final minutes, but had to settle for the one-goal win.

Despite coming up short, Shea was happy with how his team played.

“If we can stay tight with Hillsdale, we can compete in the Ocean,” Shea said.

Gomez, meanwhile, said his team welcomes the challenge of being the favorite for the Ocean title.

“That’s what these kids are ready for — that target,” Gomez said.