The Salinas Cowboys have made their case for the Tri-County
Athletic League title.
Salinas – The Salinas Cowboys have made their case for the Tri-County Athletic League title.
After taking the Monterey Bay Varsity Tournament last weekend at San Benito High School in convincing fashion, the Cowboys upended San Benito on Wednesday 17-2 in Salinas.
It was the league-opener for both San Benito and Salinas, who finished in first and second place in the TCAL last season, respectively.
“Salinas is so far out ahead of everybody,” Coach Tom Agan said. “We didn’t do a horrible job, but every little mistake we made, they capitalized on. And we made a lot of little mistakes.”
Haybaler Jordan Schafer supplied San Benito with the two goals on the night, and Agan said goalie Kyle Reuther had a strong game in net.
“Kyle Reuther looked really good in the cage,” the coach said. “It could have been worse, but Kyle blocked quite a few shots … probably about seven saves.”
San Benito, the defending TCAL champions, lost nearly its entire squad to graduation last year, and returned only three players from one year ago.
Salinas, on the other hand, did not lose a lot from last year’s second-place team, and Agan feels the pieces might be in place for the Cowboys, as they could “do pretty well in our Central Coast Section … maybe even make the second round.”
“I know it doesn’t sound good, but reality is reality,” Agan said. “We lost a lot last year. We’re making some mistakes, but they’re hot … Salinas is solid.”
The ‘Balers will have some time off before their next match. While the junior varsity will play in a tournament on Saturday in Hollister, the varsity team will return to the pool on Sept. 14-15 at a tournament in Menlo.
