Eisenhower’s deep senior class plans to establish the Cadets as serious contenders this season in what appears to once again be a highly competitive CBBN.
Senior midfielder Arath Barajas said they knew to expect an intense league opener against Sunnyside Tuesday night, since the Grizzlies often provide a good measuring stick. Both teams feature five players who have signed to join NWAC programs next fall, including eight headed to five-time defending NWAC East champion Columbia Basin.
An early second-half goal by Barajas put Eisenhower in front before one of the Grizzlies’ CBC signees, Cesar Frausto, answered by finding the net in the 63rd minute. Another senior, goalkeeper Irvin Hernandez, entered the game for extra time and ended it as the hero after making two big saves in the penalty shootout to secure a valuable 2-1 (3-1 SO) win.
“It’s always Sunnyside, they’re always going to come in hard, they’re always going to push you around but you have to go through it and win at the end of the day,” said Barajas, who plans to enlist in the Marines after graduation. “We really needed these three points after coming off a loss at Skyline.”
Three own goals contributed to a 6-0 defeat last Friday for Ike’s first loss of the season. Coach Noe Gutierrez said the Cadets struggled to create many scoring opportunities in part because they got too caught up trying to find space inside the penalty box.
That led to some practice time spent on longer shots, and a couple from 25-30 yards out didn’t miss the goal by much in the first half. When Barajas, who Gutierrez said doesn’t shoot often, collected a pass from fellow senior Jesus Garcia just outside the box on the right side, Barajas didn’t hesitate to fire a low shot just inside the near post for his first goal of the season.
Even without some regular starters, Ike’s defense largely held Sunnyside in check. Gutierrez praised the leadership of center back Zayden Encinas, a sophomore who moved over from outside back and impressed Hernandez by fighting through an ankle injury.
“He really pushed through it today,” Hernandez said. “He didn’t care if he got stepped on, pushed, hit, kicked, anything, he just kept on pushing and that’s what we need to do.”
The Grizzlies forced four saves from freshman Jesus Bustos and looked dangerous going forward at times, especially late in the first half. Frausto’s goal from the left side sparked another strong spurt, which featured an opportunity for first-team CBBN forward and CBC signee Johnny Licona when he sprinted behind the defense and beat the goalkeeper to a bouncing long ball but put his shot over the crossbar.
Offside calls nullified two Grizzlies’ goals and Hernandez stopped a hard shot from close range in extra time before the Cadets nearly earned a penalty kick. Sergio Mora beat the goalkeeper to a rebound and earned a foul, but officials ruled the CBC signee and Ike’s leading scorer from a year ago came from an offside position.
Seniors Andres Arroyo, Esteban Hernandez and Jose Villa all converted their penalty kicks, setting up Hernandez’s heroics. He took goalkeeper coach Estevan Hernandez’s advice to just trust his reactions after guessing on the first two shots and dove first to his left, then to his right, to deny Sunnyside’s last two shots.
“I just have to believe in myself,” Irvin Hernandez said. “Their body language kind of spoke to where they were leaning and I was also trying to do hand signals to throw them off.”
It paid off to give Eisenhower (1-0 CBBN, 2-1-2 overall) a home win over Sunnyside for the second straight season and a promising start to league play, which continues Friday against visiting Eastmont for the Cadets. The Grizzlies (0-1, 2-3) will look to snap a rare three-match losing streak when they travel to Moses Lake Friday night.
Ike won four of its first six league games a year ago before winning just one the rest of the way to finish sixth in the league. Gutierrez and Barajas both said they’ve still got a lot of room for improvement, but the seniors’ experience should keep the team hungry and focused.
“I think we just have to be consistent in our training, keep the intensity going,” Gutierrez said. “Yesterday we had a really good training session, finished off strong. Just carry that momentum forward.”
Second half: 1, E, Arath Barajas (Jesus Garcia), 44:00; 2, S, Cesar Frausto (Julian Puga-Zamora), 63:00.
Shootout: Eisenhower 3 (Andres Arroyo, Esteban Hernandez, Jose Villa), Sunnyside 1 (Jonathan Licona).
Saves: Sebastian Hernandez (S) 1; Jesus Bustos (E) 4, Irvin Hernandez 3.