Prep boys’ soccer: Granite Bay rallies past Central Valley to earn coach another game

Hat-trick hero Frank Reyes Felsner lifted the Granite Bay boys’ soccer team into the Division II final with his three goals, two in the first 15 minutes, as the Grizzlies beat Central Valley 3-2 Thursday night.

Obviously, it was an important game for the Grizzlies. Yes, it was a semifinal but there’s more to the story: Coach Bashar Alsakati is in his final season with the school. A passionate coach and mentor, he never stopped driving and inspiring his players from the opening whistle against Central Valley.

Alsakati is an immigrant from Iraq who fled the war in 2002; he moved to Granite Bay in 2016 to coach the Grizzlies. As a young coach, he lived in the United Arab Emirates where he was the goalkeeper coach for the pro team Al Ain.

Felsner, who dominated against Central Valley, was quick to credit his coach for the win. How important is he?

“Very important! We’ve been playing the entire season for him,” Reyes Felsner said.

Alsakati is leaving the Grizzlies to coach Sacramento State’s goalies, but wishes he could still be with the Granite Bay kids. He commented

“I decided to go and work in a different zone and cannot stay working with high school boys’ soccer due to recruiting conflicts,” he said.

Clearly, he will miss the Grizzlies and will be missed. His team certainly gave the small home crowd a thrill Thursday night. It sounded as if there were thousands in attendance. At one point, the crowd started singing “ole, ole, ole.” Even the athletic director was pumping up the crowd. Postgame, the crowd ran onto the field with players, hugging classmates and Alsakati alike.

In the first half, the Grizzlies dominated, with Reyes Felsner opening the scoring at the eight minute. He followed that an 11th minute score, as he juked the goalie and tapped the ball into the back of the net.

The Hawks were more energized in the second half, with a quick goal by Alex Bautista who headed the ball in from a long free kick. Then, junior and team captain Jose Cazares scored a wonder goal from 30 yards out that landed perfectly in the top left corner.

Felsner and the Grizzlies, however, rallied to score again with just seven minutes left.

The biggest achievement tonight for the Grizzlies was their ability to stay focused as their playoff run seemed to be sliding away.

“When a team comes back from 2-0 down, that team normally scores the third goal. Today, my boys reacted in a great way,” Alsakati said. “They stuck to their game and forced their way back. I’m here to build character to help them to be stronger and they showed their strength today.”

For Central Valley, it was a tough loss and the players were disappointed but coach Horacio Martinez said his team will build back for next year.

“We’ve got a good amount of juniors about six of them. We also have four sophomores plus a great JV team. Next year, we will be better prepared both on the coaching side and the playing side,” he said.

This is Alsakati’s first appearance in section final. His Granite Bay Grizzlies will face Rio Americano on Thursday.

Alsakati will remember his time with Granite Bay fondly regardless of what happens in the final.

“I don’t care a lot about the destination, I care a lot about the journey,” he said.

This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 1:02 AM.