January 20, 2023: What started out with Clovis youth soccer being honored by Clovis High in which all youth received free entry while wearing their soccer uniforms, ended in a Clovis East last minute goal to seal a victory on Friday night.
#24 Cameron Martino kicked the eventual game sealing goal in the 36th minute of the second half of Friday night’s game, crossing from the left side of the field to the right side of the net.
After the kick, Clovis High and #7 Alexander Rodriguez did their best to try to even the score, but failed in doing so as Clovis’ pressures on goal were thwarted away by the Timberwolves.
Clovis High had a 1-0 score until around the 25th minute of the first half when #19 Jose Damian scored the first of what would be two goals for the freshman on the night.
His second goal of the night came with less than five minutes left in the first half, giving Clovis East a 2-1 lead going into halftime.
Questionable calls were made by the referees on both sides, as the second half became a lot more physical than the first.
With proverbial bragging rights and TRAC league records on the line, Clovis High began to battle back, keeping the ball on East’s side of the field.
With Clovis East’s win, they bump themselves into second place in the TRAC, now just ahead of Clovis High by winning percentage according to MaxPreps.com.
#7 Alexander “Xander” Rodriguez for Clovis High was awarded a penalty kick in the middle of the second half and did not waste it, as backup goalie #33 Anthony Escatell who had just come in for #32 Abdiel Mota, was unable to handle the shot attempt, evening the score at 2 a piece.
And this is where the score would stand for a while as Clovis High and Clovis East traded possession and sides of the field, each with separate chances to take the lead.
Perhaps, the best opportunity before the game winning kick came in the 32nd minute as a shoulder flew from a Clovis High defender into #10 Cole Lomeli’s chest, awarding him a free kick from about 20-30 yards away.
Lomeli’s kick sailed just above the crossbar, hitting the football crossbar directly behind it.
But it would come to no true avail for Clovis High, as Clovis East’s Cameron Martino saved the day four minutes later with his game winning kick.
Clovis East’s (8-4-1) next game will be at home on January 24th, against Central High (6-7-3), a team which they haven’t faced this season.
The next game for the Cougars (12-6-1) will be at home against Clovis West (8-6-2) also on January 24th.