Late goal propels Capuchino to win

Despite their dominance, the Mustangs needed a goal late in the second half to pull out a 2-1 victory.

"The first 15 and last 10 minutes we played well," said Capuchino coach Marty Jenkins. "The middle third we didn't play well. They beat us to every ball."

Capuchino (3-1), which lost 3-2 to San Mateo Monday, scored the game winner with nine minutes left in the game. Shoshana Pierce initiated the play by swinging a corner kick to the far post of the Notre Dame goal. Kelly Young got a piece of the ball and put it back into the middle. Caitlin Peluffo was there to pound the ball into the top of the net for the 2-1 advantage.

Peluffo was, by far, the best player on the field. From her midfield position, she time and again used nifty moves to free herself from defenders. At one point as she dribbled the ball down the sideline toward the endline, four Notre Dame defenders converged on her.

"She's a phenomenal player," Jenkins said. "Right now, she's trying to do too much. She wants to win."

Capuchino outshot Notre Dame 12-3, yet the Mustangs found themselves tied 1-1 at halftime. Early on, it appeared the game would be a rout as the Mustangs took a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the game after deluging the Notre Dame goal with shots. They finally put one away that was triggered by a throw in. The throw in was flicked on by Peluffo to Jamie Byron 25 yards from the goal. Byron settled the ball with a defender draped over her back. She shook the defender, spun and fired a shot into the bottom left corner of the goal.

"[Byron] played well tonight," Jenkins said. "I've been pushing her to be more offensive."

Despite dictating the play, Capuchino suffered a defensive lapse minutes before the end of the half that resulted in the Notre Dame goal. Amadea Earl took a long pass and broke toward the Capuchino goal. With the Capuchino defender between her and the goal, Earl sent a pass back toward the top of the box. Rebecca Orloff was there to take the pass, took a couple dribbles to settle the ball before unleashing a shot that was right at the Capuchino goalkeeper. Unfortunately for the Mustangs, the goalkeeper couldn't handle the shot and had it sail over it her head to tie the game.

"My goalkeeper made a bad judgment but it was a defensive breakdown in the middle," Jenkins said.

While the game was close, Jenkins knew it would have been a different game if he had all his regulars at his disposal.

"Even though we have a lot of returners, we're still young," Jenkins said. "I had four starters on the bench."