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Truckee soccer | Girls knock off Fallon, advance past first playoff round

Steve Puterski
Lahontan Valley News
Steve Puterski / Lahontan Valley NewsTruckee's Melissa Cardoza dribbles the ball during the Wolverines 2-0 win over Fallon in the first round of the 3A playoffs on Wednesday.
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FALLON, Nev. and#8212; A lucky bounce and a smooth operator was the difference for the Truckee girlsand#8217; soccer team.

The Wolverines were on the receiving end of a Fallon own-goal and added a late goal by Ali Haines to drop Fallon, 2-0, in a first-round Northern 3A playoff match on Wednesday at Fallon.

and#8220;The girls played up to their potential and made the right choices with the ball,and#8221; Truckee coach Katie Jamison said. and#8220;We finished when we needed to.and#8221;



After battling to a 0-0 tie in the first half, Truckee struck paydirt six minutes into the second half off a Shauna Day corner kick. Day sent in a ball from the right corner that bounced off a teammate and several Fallon defenders before ending up in the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.

With three minutes remaining in the game, Haines sliced through the right side of the Fallon defense and drove a shot high over Lady Wave goalkeeper Brandy Mejia into the left corner to ice the win.



and#8220;I just touched the ball through the defense and took a shot,and#8221; Haines said. and#8220;We have a lot of heart and want to go to state.and#8221;

Truckeeand#8217;s defense shut down the Lady Waveand#8217;s high-octane offense and only allowed one shot on goal in the second half. Offensively, the Wolverines controlled possession for the majority of the match and kept the pressure on Fallonand#8217;s defense.

Coming into the match, Fallon had scored 90 goals compared to 54 for Truckee. The two teams tied, 2-2, during the 3A crossover tournament in September.

and#8220;It was a good game,and#8221; said Fallon coach Lance Lattin, whose team finished 15-4-3 overall. and#8220;We were a little unlucky with that own goal. It just ricocheted the wrong way. After that we had to chase a little bit and that set us up for that second goal, probably.and#8221;

Nevertheless, Truckeeand#8217;s suffocating defense allowed Fallonand#8217;s scoring tandem of Leslie Raygoza and Julianne Hale little room to operate.

and#8220;I call it the kaleidoscope effect,and#8221; Jamison said. and#8220;We are always moving and keeping them off guard so they canand#8217;t mark us.and#8221;

Truckee, which improved to 13-7-1 overall, will return to Fallon for Fridayand#8217;s regional semifinal against South Tahoe at 2 p.m. The Wolverines must win to clinch a berth in next weekand#8217;s state championship tournament.


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