Ironwood's late rush not enough to advance

Ironwood boys soccer waited for the worst possible time to play its worst game of the season – the state tournament.

The result? No. 11 seed Central (5-5) scored twice in a 6 -minute span in the second half for a 2-1 win against No. 6 Ironwood (9-5) in the first round of the 5A-II State Tournament. The Bobcats will face No. 3 Tolleson Friday.

”We’re a much better team than what we showed tonight,” said Ironwood coach Tim Beck. “That was the worst we played all year. I wish I could pinpoint what it was that we weren’t doing so I could change it (during the game), but I can’t.”

Despite being the higher seed, Bobcats coach Xavier Flores said his team didn’t view the win as an upset because they knew if they kept up their energy and were physical they can beat any team.

“We struggled some during the season,” Flores said. “But the boys always fought back. We came back in one game from 2-0 deficit and won on penalty kicks. In another game we were down 3-0 and won penalty kicks. That takes a lot of strength and courage to have that fight to pull out victories.”

Central jumped on the board first inside the 32^nd minute of the second half when senior Alberto Garcia directed a centering pass toward the net with a header, through the outstretched hands of Eagles goalkeeper Juan Castellanos. As the ball cleared the scrum in front of the net, Ironwood junior Garett Robertson nearly blocked the attempt with header, but the ball caromed off the side post and went into the net.

At the 26-minute mark, junior Raul Alvardo connected at the top of the box and beat Castellanos on the left side for a 2-0 lead.

With their backs against the wall, Ironwood turned up its intensity and attacked the offensive zone with urgency. It paid off when a Bobcat defender pulled down junior forward Cory Christ inside the box for a penalty kick. Christ pushed the ball right and beat Central goalkeeper Juan Carlos Mejia with 8:24 remaining.

”It shouldn’t take us being down to start being aggressive,” Beck said. “That falls on me. I didn’t have them ready to play. There are always nerves coming into (the state tournament) but we’re better than (tonight).”

The Eagles kept the pressure on as the clock ticked down, but an offside call ended a drive inside the 6-minute mark, and with a minute to play junior Ahmed El-Zaharna had an attempt blocked out of bounds by a Central defender. Christ then headed a corner kick by senior Miguel Romero out of bounds.

Ironwood had trouble finding its rhythm early as the Bobcats used their speed to hustle to loose balls and keep the pressure contained in the Eagles’ half of the field. However, with 20 minutes to play in the first half, it seemed Ironwood had found its legs as it nearly broke the scoreless tie on three chances inside the 10-minute mark.

Robertson nearly put a shot in but Mejia got a hand on the attempt and redirected it over the net. A minute later El-Zaharna had a shot picked off by Mejia to halt another threat.

Beck said the week leading up to the state tournament might have hurt his squad. Due to the storms two weeks ago, the Eagles were forced to play five games last week.

”Playing five games in five days was a little ridiculous, but the weather was what it was,” Beck said. “There may have been a little hangover from that going into tonight. It’s no way to go into the state tournament.”