San Jacinto College shuts out defending national champs in first round national tourney action

Rob Vanya - 11/15/2007 Edgar Alvarez, left, scored the lone goal that won the match for San Jacinto College. Running alongside Alvarez is midfielder Darren Caesar.

In a gritty defensive duel, fifth-seeded San Jacinto College shut out fourth-seeded defending national champions Jefferson College 1-0 in the first round of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national tournament, held Nov. 15 in Tyler.

San Jacinto College forward/midfielder Edgar Alvarez scored the only goal in the match in the 21st minute of the second half on a well-placed chip shot into the left corner of the net.

San Jacinto College’s head soccer coach Dr. David Santesteban was elated with the outcome and spoke highly of the team’s resiliency.

“It was just a tremendous effort by every player,” Santesteban commented. “It was such a stingy game and we were able to scratch out a win mostly because of the outstanding team defense. We missed a few opportunities early in the match that could have put us in the driver’s seat, but our guys kept battling back.”

Santesteban said it was particularly critical for San Jacinto College to defeat the defending champions and place them at a disadvantage. “Jefferson has been sort of our personal nemesis, so this is an especially gratifying win for us,” he remarked.

The match was for the most part relatively clean, with Jefferson receiving two yellow cards and San Jacinto College receiving only one yellow card.

Jefferson College maintained a slight edge during the first half, keeping possession of the ball longer than San Jacinto College and firing more shots-on-goal. But Jefferson could not punch anything into the goal, due to San Jacinto College’s swarming defense and to goalkeeper Gabriel Rodriguez, who came up with two acrobatic saves. The tide slowly turned during the second half when San Jacinto College began to dominate the midfield and thus gain control of transition.

San Jacinto College will next square off against undefeated, first-seeded Georgia Perimeter (19-0-2) at 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 16 in the second round of the national tournament. No games will be played on Saturday, Nov. 17. The final round of the tournament will be played on Sunday, Nov. 18.

The San Jacinto College men’s soccer team earned a berth in the national tournament by defeating Ranger College and Northern Oklahoma in the recent Mid-Southwest District Championship. The trip to the national tournament is the third for San Jacinto College (16-2-1 in the regular season) in the last four years. San Jacinto College finished third in 2004 and fourth in 2005.

For results of the national tournament, visit www.apacheathletics.com on the Internet.