Senators blow by the Mustangs

Damonte Ranch redux: Senators blow by the Mustangs

BY MIKE HOUSER

Appeal Sports Writer

Call it a victory in two parts.

Part one saw some out-of-control sprinklers put the brakes on the Carson-Damonte Ranch boys soccer match Sept. 26, with the Senators holding a 2-0 lead at the 7 minute, 30-second mark.

Part two unfolded Monday, when the Senators picked right up where they started five days previously, burying the Mustangs under a deluge of shots and taking a 10-0 Sierra League victory at Carson High School.

Carson outshot the Mustangs 25-5, Senators midfielder Adam Updegrove scored four goals (including two Sept. 26) and fellow juniors Blake Moreland and Uriel Duran each added two more as the first-place Senators improved to 5-0-1 in league and 14-1-2 overall.

The Mustangs slipped to 0-6 in league and 0-8 overall.

With a game against arch rival Douglas just two days away, the Senators boys had to stay focused and play in the here and now against the Mustangs. Moreland got Carson untracked first, taking a feed from senior defender Matt Tillitt before muscling past a Damonte Ranch defender and beating goalkeeper Thomas Beatty to give the Senators a 3-0 lead in the 17th minute.

In the 28th minute, Carson struck again after Updegrove beat two defenders and crossed it to Moreland, who beat Beatty.

Updegrove supplied a SportsCenter moment 47 seconds later. A Damonte Ranch player mishandled the ball and Updegrove tracked it down and left three Mustangs and Beatty lying on the ground as he scored his team-leading eighth goal of the year to give Carson a 5-0 lead at the half.

Updegrove added his ninth goal -and fourth in the two-part match - in the 52nd minute on an assist from sophomore Moises Fernandez to make it 6-0.

"Today we just controlled the ball and were playing well," Updegrove, who also credited a quick start - he scored 45 seconds into the match - on Sept. 26 as another reason the Senators were able to put the Mustangs in a defensive mode early. "We worked the ball today and used our wings to get quality goals. It's the kind of game everybody wants to play in."

That would include Duran, who had a smile on his face as he hesitated to exit the game as a teammate yelled, "No. Really. Come out," when it was time for Duran to leave for a substitution.

Taking a feed from Fernandez, Duran gave Carson a 7-0 lead with a blast from about 15 yards out in the 59th minute. Duran also punched in a goal from about 25 yards out to round out Carson's scoring in the 69th minute.

"We need to take every game seriously from here on out," said Senators coach Jason Koop, who commented on the tough play in the Sierra League and on Douglas' recent win at South Tahoe (its first since 2000). "The thing is, teams are tying and beating other teams. It shows what we have on the Sierra side: On any given day you don't know who will be the winner.

"We have Douglas coming here (Wednesday), South Tahoe and Wooster all have good teams...Reno - we have to go to all four on the road."

Another thing Koop is delighted about is how the ball is being distributed.

"Yes, Adam has nine goals. But when you look at our scoring list and assists, we have 18 players out of 20 who have contributed a goal or an assist," Koop said. "Adam's the leader, but the entire team aspect - there's not just one person to score or to dish it off. We played unselfishly today."

Senior Martin Azzam gave the Senators an 8-0 lead in the 63rd minute on an assist from Victor Arreguin. And senior Drew Good, who assisted on both Updegrove goals Sept. 26, took a dish from junior Carlos Contreras and put it in the net in the 64th minute to make it 9-0.

Koop said he moved some of his players around a little for Damonte Ranch.

"Uriel and Brady Roser, we had them play more defense - we switched formations a bit," Koop said. "With (Duran and Roser) distributing the ball (from the midfield), the team had a solid line in front of the defense and it solidified our attack.

"We were without John Nuthall (heel), Drew Heller (hip) and Derek Sanchez (illness). It's a tribute to the depth we have. Our guys play hard wherever I put them in."

Koop played three defenders in front of goalkeepers Brandon Briggs and Ryan Lee. Briggs wasn't forced to make any saves, while Lee had one save.

Beatty had four saves for Damonte Ranch.

Regarding Douglas, Koop said it didn't matter to him whether his team was coming off a nail-biter or a 10-0 blowout.

"Douglas is a rivalry game, whether it's for first place or a playoff spot like four years ago," Koop said. "We want to play well against Douglas regardless. We're excited they're going to come here and play. They'll bring a big crowd like always. The game has playoff implications. It should be a barn-burner."

The Carson-Douglas game will begin 7:00 p.m. Wednesday at Carson High School. The Tigers are 5-0-1 in league after their 1-0 victory over South Tahoe on Saturday. South Tahoe is 3-1-2 in league and played to a draw with Carson in their first meeting.

• Contact Mike Houser at mhouser@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1214.