BY NAVTEJ HUNDAL
Turlock Journal
In their first home game in three weeks, Hughson High School girls soccer fell 2-0 against Orestimba High School at Deputy Dennis Wallace Soccer Fields on Friday.
The Huskies have now lost six consecutive games and are 6-10-1 overall and 0-5 in Trans Valley League Play this season. During the six-game skid, they’ve been shut out five times with their only goal coming in a 3-1 loss against Escalon High School on Jan. 3.
While it’s not the result Hughson wanted, head coach Rich Torres praised the team’s improvement in the passing game, especially in the second half.
“Going in the first half of this game, we didn’t move the ball so well but in the second half we started improving once again,” Torres said. “The key takeaway was that we started to move the ball better in the second half and that’s what we’ve been working and trying to do to get our program to the next level.”
Orestimba’s senior striker Maya Barajas has been the catalyst for the Warriors' success this season, leading the team in goals scored with 10 before Friday’s contest. Against Hughson, the senior striker showcased her offensive prowess by recording a brace in the first half.
Her first goal came within the first couple minutes of the match off a breakaway where she netted the ball through Hughson’s goal post to take a 1-0 lead.
Moments after Hughson failed to score, Barajas dribbled past multiple Huskies defenders and kicked the ball past junior goalkeeper Emily Villalobos to score another goal.
Coming out of halftime, it seemed that both teams emphasized a focus on the defensive side as the physicality between both teams amplified. Every time each team was close to a breakaway goal, a player from the opposing team came in within the last second to make a stop.
Near the end of the match, Barajas had another clear breakaway for a potential third goal. After dribbling past multiple defenders, Huskies’ sophomore defender Keylee Lundquist came in the last second and collided with the Warriors’ striker, forcing her to attempt a difficult shot that was caught by Villalobos.
While they improved defensively, the Huskies couldn’t capitalize on multiple opportunities to get on the board. Junior forward Madden Nobles’ shot at goal went slightly over the goalbox and multiple possessions later, she had another chance to score but her attempt went left of the goalbox and was caught by Orestimba’s senior goalkeeper Mariah Avila.
When he first took over as varsity head coach, Torres understood how competitive teams in the TVL were and believes this experience could help improve the team’s defense and continuity moving forward.
“Going forward, this is just really getting game experience and everything is key,” Torres said. “Right now level wise, the TVL (Trans Valley League) is a very tough league … I knew that we’re going to have to grow the program and I’m really happy because we’ve actually closed the gap.”
The Huskies will now have to shift their focus toward next Tuesday when they host one of the premier teams in the league, the Hilmar Yellowjackets. Hilmar comes to Hughson at 9-3-3 overall and 3-0-1 in league play. The Yellowjackets are currently on an unbeaten streak of four games against the Huskies, dating back to January 2023.
“Hilmar’s defense is pretty stellar, I’ve been watching them (and) they’re not giving anything,” Torres said. “Defense takes discipline that’s what defense takes and we got to tighten up that discipline a little bit more, especially against Hilmar.”
