Stevenson 3, Columbia High 1

The Bulldogs got off to a fast start on the rainy afternoon, getting a goal from Sosa in the fourth minute off a pass from Waters and a second in the 23rd minute from Mark Kilpatrick. Chas Bell assisted.

Columbia's lone goal came off the foot of Demetrio Sanchez in the 26th minute. Marci Garcia received credit for the assist.

But the Bruins never got closer than 2-1, which was the halftime score.

Sosa doubled the Bulldogs lead in the 65th minute, scoring off another Waters assist.

"I was really impressed with Stevenson," said Bruins Coach Peter Knowles. "They were in sync with one another and played very well for the first game of the season."

"They definitely dominated play," he added.

The Bruins, conversely, appeared out of sorts in their season-opener.

"We're still a couple of steps away from finding our rhythm and being where we want to be," Knowles noted.

Columbia finished with 11 shots on goal against Bulldogs goalkeeper Brian Nichols--who had eight saves--but didn't attempt a corner kick.

"That tells me we weren't getting a lot of pressure in deep," Knowles said of the dearth of corner-kick attempts.

Nor were the Bruins at full strength. They were missing their two returning All-Trico first-team selections: sweeper Tony Hernandez and forward Samuel Lachino. Both were ineligible due to a lack of required practices.

Braulio Garcia stepped up his play in their absence, earning Knowles' player of the match award for his tenacity and effort on defense, especially his second-half marking of Sosa.

The non-league match also gave Knowles the opportunity to play every player who suited up and figure out the best position for each.

"It would've been nice to win," he said, "but I don't feel bad about it because we were able to sort out some issues in terms of where to play people so we can start to look like a team."