Rivalries usually consist of teams trading wins game in and game out. But in boys soccer, the Gilroy and San Benito rivalry has been mostly one sided – tilting toward the Mustangs.
On a rain-soaked and muddy surface Thursday, the Balers evened the playing field and played the Mustangs to a 1-1 tie in Hollister. The game, which was physical and included seven yellow cards, stayed in the middle of the field with opportunities rare.
In the first half, each team only had one good chance. Gilroy’s opportunity came midway through the half when San Benito keeper Oscar Arroyo mishandled the ball, giving Raymundo Gonzalez a chance for a goal. Good defense came to San Benito’s rescue and cleared the ball.
On the other side, Ricardo Roque gave the Mustangs fits on the defensive end, opening up the Balers’ lone chance. On the play, an arrant shot skipped just outside the net.
“Every time we come here it’s always a battle just because of the field condition,” Gilroy head coach Armando Padilla said. “Anytime we come to Hollister it’s just … it’s a rivalry. If you look at the previous scores, it’s always a one-goal differential game. If you look at today’s game, it was pretty much going to be that.”
And it was.
The Balers finally got on the board in the opening minutes of the second half on a fluke shot by Brian Arrevalo.
After the Mustangs defense cleared the ball to about 20 feet from the goalie’s box, Arrevalo gathered the ball, spun and fired a shot on the net. Hitting the ball off the side of his foot, the ball knuckled in the air and skipped past the Gilroy keeper’s hands.
“Pretty much, I just thought about scoring that goal,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how it goes, as long as we play as a team. A goal is a goal. Just think about shooting and it was a lucky shot.”
It was a lucky shot, but it gave San Benito the momentum in a tightly played contest.
But after nearly 30 minutes of scoreless ball – with the Balers overloading the defensive end – the Mustangs broke through.
After a corner kick, sophomore Jorge Ontiveros gained position on the left side of the net and fired a bad-angle shot at the goal. Arroyo dove for the ball, but it skipped past his out-reached arms.
“We were trying to attack,” Ontiveros said. “After I scored, I just wanted to score again – that’s what I wanted to do.”
He never got his chance, as both defenses clamped down and eliminated additional opportunities. It was the first time since the 2006-07 season that San Benito earned at least a tie against their rivals.
“They showed their heart out there and that’s the team I want to have all the time from now on,” San Benito head coach Tony Deras said.
The tie sends both teams to a 1-1-1 record in Tri-County Athletic League play.
