Lady Gators blast Soquel for Open title

Saturday, it wasn’t even close as the top-seeded Gators put on a dominant display in a 12-2 dismantling of second-seeded Soquel.

“Whenever you’re playing Soquel, it’s one you circle,” said SHP head coach Jamie Frank, who admitted this is probably the best team he’s had in his six years at the helm and is one of the best Gators squads of all time.

The win is the second Open Division championship in a row for SHP and the third since 2019.

Saturday, SHP (27-2) made Soquel (22-7) look like a first-year program so dominant was the Gators’ performance. And while the final score was lopsided, it was the Gators defense that starred in the first half as they limited Soquel to just one goal in the first two quarters.

SHP simply shut down the Knights’ offense. On the rare chances Soquel got a clean look at goal, starting goalkeeper Ellison Brush was there to deny the Knights. Brush finished with eight saves through the first three quarters, including four in the first. She gave way to backup Isabella Dova in the fourth and she produced five saves over the final seven minutes of action.

“Our goalie play was so strong,” Frank said. “You know if you play good defense, you have a chance (to win).”

Brush allowed just one goal in three quarters of play, stuffing a Soquel penalty shot in the third quarter for good measure. Dova blocked a 5-meter penalty shot in the fourth quarter, as well.

The Gators defense needed to on point early on because Soquel’s defense was just as stifling early on. Soquel goalie Maddison Barwick was having a strong match of her own as she had three point-blank stops in the first period. SHP eventually took a 1-0 lead after the first period on a Vivian Golub 5-meter penalty shot. Golub would finish with four goals.

Natalia Szczerba opened her scoring account midway through the second period, scoring from the set on an assist from Kiernan Hogan. Szczerba and Hogan switched roles less than 50 seconds later with Hogan converting a Szczerba assist into a power play goal for a 3-0 lead. The pair hooked up for a third time in the period with Szczerba taking a pass from Hogan in the set and then powered her way through the Soquel defense to put SHP up 4-1 at the break.

And even though Soquel stayed close, its first-half goal was kind of fluky as Libby Forrest’s shot deflected off a defender and past Brush.

In the third period, the dam broke and SHP flooded the Soquel goal, scoring seven times. Szczerba, a member of the US Youth National Team, was at the forefront. She scored twice in the third to give her four for the match — including a length-of-the-pool strike as the third period ended.

But it was her pinpoint passing that helped the Gators blow open the match. She had three of her team-high five assists in that third period. SHP’s dominance was such that during a timeout a Soquel assistant coach could be seen consoling goalie Barwick. But it wasn’t her fault. She had no chance against the Gators’ onslaught.

“We were bound to break through,” Frank said. “The execution was there.”

The fourth quarter was a chance for both teams to empty their bench and simply run out the clock.

“I’m just really proud of the girls,” Frank said.

And the season isn’t over for either team. By the four semifinalists in the Open Division qualify for the Northern California regional tournament which begins Tuesday. SHP earned the No. 1 seed in Division I and will host No. 8 Granite Bay (29-3) Tuesday at a time to be determined.