Prep boys’ soccer: Vista Del Lago’s run ends as shorthanded squad gets topped

It wasn’t supposed to end this way.

The top-seeded Vista Del Lago boys’ soccer team was knocked off by No. 4 seed Patterson 2-0 Thursday night in a Northern California Division III semifinal.

It was a disappointing loss for the Eagles, but there were few tears after the game, if any. Players and coaches were in high spirits as they thanked their supporters and traded postgame hugs.

That attitude is what coach Grant Tyler has instilled in his team.

Due to injuries and other circumstances, the Eagles were missing seven varsity players, including two of their captains.

The team pulled up nine JV players. Seven made their debut. On top of that, a starting defender went down with an injury during the game.

Still, Tyler had a smile after the game.

“I’m not down,” he said to start his postgame interview. “I mean, my boys gave everything. We were super shorthanded, extremely short-handed and one of our stars went down in the first two minutes. I mean he was he’s been absolutely solid in the back. So it is what it is but I gave I think seven kids their varsity debut tonight. That’s pretty cool.”

In his Nottingham-area English accent, Tyler described the joy he has coaching these boys. He sees his job as youth ministry.

“I coach because I love soccer, but I also coach because I love Jesus,” he said with a smile, “and I want this to be my mission field. So I want to be a disciple to them and I want them to grow in character, not just as players.”

He cited the importance of growing character and integrity on and off the field as this is an extension of the classroom.

Tyler has been the varsity coach for two years while pulling double duty coaching the JV team. He moved here from England 20 years ago.

As the coach said, this team’s goal was to win the Divison III Sac-Joaquin section title. They did last week with a 2-0 win over Patterson.

Finishing as runners-up in the Captial Athletic League, the Eagles defied odds in the playoffs beating second-seeded Placer and No. 1 Patterson.

Thursday’s game was tough but the Eagles played a good game as stars Josh Moll and Bryce Pando gave them a fighting chance.

Patterson moves on to the Division III NorCal boys’ soccer championship and will play Aragon on Saturday.

Striker Antonio Gallegos opened the scoring Thursday with a header from a corner by Jonathan Gallardo in the 14th minute. Mathew Aldana then scored a penalty at the beginning of the second half.

Most of the team sported matching blonde-dyed haircuts. Fun spirit like that helped them to victory as the coach emphasized their synergy.

The Tigers stuck to their game plan. Coach Luis Torres said his boys have grown massively since their loss to Vista Del Lago last week while also praising the opposition.

“They were missing some players, but they’re a solid team. That didn’t change. So we definitely grew. We bounced back from that loss,” Torres said.

The furthest that Patterson had previously gone was to the section title when now-head coach Torres was a player at the school.