Luis Hernandez Scores in Overtime to Lift Dolphins over Granada Hills
By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
It was survival of the fittest last Thursday at Stadium by the Sea, where the Palisades High boys soccer team was in serious danger of being eliminated from the City Section Division I playoffs.
With injuries mounting and exhaustion taking its toll the Dolphins needed someone—anyone—to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Luis Hernandez answered the call, sidestepping to create separation and scoring from 15 yards out five minutes into the second overtime period and Palisades held on for a gutsy 2-1 victory.
“We were missing eight guys and a few more went down during the game,” Pali High Coach Dave Suarez said. “It wasn’t about who was healthy, it was about who was less hurt. We only had 12 guys at practice who could play the other day. We brought up four JV players (Shane Thomas, Liam Conrad, Tayor Strijdveen and Malik Cheka) and were literally teaching them from the sideline. When your first varsity minutes are in overtime in the playoffs, it shows how thin we were.”
Granada Hills nearly scored seconds after the opening kickoff and Angel Gomez tapped a through ball inches wide in the 15th minute.
In the 21st minute, Jackson Page dribbled in from left wing, deked a defender and buried a low shot into the corner to put the Dolphins in front. Goalkeeper Tommy Meek tipped a high shot over the crossbar just before the halftime whistle to keep Palisades ahead.
“I got the ball in the six-yard box, the goalie opened his legs to block and I slid it near post,” Page said of his goal. “Those last 20 minutes everyone was dead but adrenaline kicked in and we found a way.”
Granada Hills’ Joshua Durodola tied it in the 53rd minute and the Highlanders dominated the rest of regulation. Meek got his ankle stepped on while making a save late in the first 10-minute overtime and was replaced by Val Sterza. Palisades traveled to top-seeded El Camino Real yesterday. “If we can get healthy I like our chances,” Suarez said.
Palisades’ girls team also won its playoff opener Friday, getting second-half goals by Sadie Holt and Annette Segreto to blank visiting Taft 2-0. The third-seeded Dolphins host sixth-seeded Chatsworth at 3 p.m. today with the winner advancing to Tuesday’s semifinals.
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