Junior forward scores twice in 2-0 victory
MORGAN HILL — Sobrato’s Austin Jackson had to sit the first meeting against Live Oak this season.
So the junior forward made two lasting memories for himself and the Bulldogs in Tuesday’s rematch.
Jackson scored a pair of goals, and Sobrato reasserted its dominance over the rival Acorns with a 2-0 triumph in a Blossom Valley Athletic League-Santa Teresa Division soccer match at the Morgan Hill Outdoor Sports Center.
“It feels amazing,” said Jackson, who was sidelined with a groin injury for the Bulldogs’ 2-1 victory over Live Oak on Jan. 8. “Scoring twice, especially against your rival, in a big game. It just felt good to play again. I’ve missed a couple games with my injury, but it’s nice to be back.”
Jackson needed only a few minutes to make his presence felt. He netted his first goal in the third minute, bending a spectacular 26-yard shot away from Acorns goalkeeper Eric Saavedra. Jackson struck again in the 49th minute when he followed a deflected shot by teammate Arturo Ceja. The ball trickled right to Jackson, who tapped it under Saavedra from less than five yards out.
“Most of the time when that happens, the player tries to blast it in because the ball’s right there,” Sobrato coach Ricardo Martinez said. “Austin has great skills. He did a good job staying calm and just knocking it in. That was pretty.”
Holding his arms out and cheering with teammates, Jackson soaked up the moment in the unseasonably warm sunlight.
“I can’t describe the feeling,” he said.
Jackson was subbed out in 57th minute, serenaded with cheers and a couple boos. He totaled a game-high five shots.
“It’s a lot of fun having him back,” said Cullen Herrington, who joined Jackson and Thomas Torres — the team’s leading goal-scorer — at forward in the Bulldogs’ new 3-4-3 scheme. “Our formation really gave us a lot more opportunities to score. We were just moving the ball around a lot better, ripping shots.”
In a matchup of win-starved teams, Sobrato (8-7-2 overall, 5-5-1 BVAL) snapped a four-game slide and swept the season series with Live Oak (6-7-4, 3-5-3). The Acorns, who hold the best goals against average in the division, are winless in six straight consecutive games. They were outshot 20-6.
“We knew they were high powered. We talked a lot about how they’ve scored a lot of goals,” Live Oak coach Tony Goble said of the Bulldogs, who average more than two goals a game. “But they give up a lot of goals, too. … So I let our guys know they can be scored on. Obviously, we were going to have to play solid defense as a team. But we were beaten and outplayed.”
Saavedra collected five saves, including an impressive stop off a wide-open shot by Herrington in the 23rd minute, and Diego Hernandez and Adolfo Canela had two shots apiece for the Acorns.
Live Oak nearly scored twice in the first half. Juan Baca sent a 17-yard bender into the crossbar during the 26th minute, and Nick Ellis tapped a long pass just wide of the net in the 33rd.
“Trailing 1-0 at halftime, I told the guys, ‘We need to score anyway to win.’ But that first goal in the third minute was kind of deflating,” Goble said. “Something that’s been lacking the past couple of weeks — three weeks maybe — is intensity. We need to play with heart. Sobrato did today.”
Bulldogs goalkeeper Simon Schmidt broke up five crosses and made one save.
“We really shut them out defensively,” Herrington said. “Sometimes, our marking isn’t the best. But, today, I can’t really remember them having any clear shots on goal.”
Sobrato can still make the section playoffs, Martinez said, but needs to win its remaining three games and have the division front-runners slip up down the stretch.
“Hopefully, we’re back on track,” Martinez said. “I’m hoping we can get in. What we do now is look for help from teams like Live Oak.”
