Seton ends Bruin win streak in boys soccer

“They [Cougars] are a really good team. They’re very solid and they definitely worked really hard to get the win,” said Magana-Rivera. “I’m not going to take anything away from them, but we felt like we had chance to win the game.”

Columbia entered the game coming off a 12-0 win over Stevenson on March 23.

Against Seton, the Cougars took a 1-0 first-half lead. The Bruins appeared to tie the game, but junior Damian Sanchez’s apparent score was not allowed because of an offsides penalty.

“We had a lot of set pieces, so we had a lot of corner kicks, and we had a lot of free kicks, too,” said Magana-Rivera. “It was a really aggressive game and there were a lot of fouls by both squads. We created a lot of chances in the second half where we could’ve scored for sure, but we were just unlucky that the ball didn’t hit the back of the net.”

The Cougars also scored a goal in the second half for their fourth straight win and their fourth shutout of the season (the first time Columbia has been shut out this season). Bruin senior goalkeeper Alfonso Serrato had a season-high five saves.

“I think we’ll come back and play stronger in our next game,” said Magana-Rivera. “I think this game was a learning experience for us.”

Columbia, which is on spring break this week, will play its next contest April 9 versus the King’s Way Christian High Knights (3-1 league, 3-2 overall) in Vancouver.

Seton (4-0 league, 4-2 overall) is on top of the six-team league standings, followed by King’s Way in second and Columbia in third place.