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Good signs in tough match
Rally against Quakes signals life from Seahorses offense
LA MIRADA, Calif. (May 19, 2007)—Oscar Sims had two goals and an assist, all in the first half, to help the San Fernando Valley Quakes build a three-goal lead and hold off a Southern California Seahorses rally for a 4-3 victory Saturday night in a USL Premier Development League match at La Mirada High School.
Ryan Shaw and Matthew Davis added goals for the Quakes (3-1-1), who held leads of 3-0 and 4-2 in the first half.
The Seahorses (0-3-0) received two goals by newcomer Sven Simon and one by Justin Farnsworth to close the gap. They nearly had a fourth goal on a point-black shot in traffic in the 55th minute by Josiah Snelgrove, but the shot caught the crossbar of the goal. It bounced outside the goal line to a Seahorses teammate, who booted the rebound just wide to the left of the net.
Averaging three goals per game, the Quakes are one of the higher-scoring teams in the Southwest Division of the USL Premier Development League. They showed their wide-open style early, getting a goal by Shaw in the 4th minute on a strike from 18 yards. Shaw entered the match among the national leaders with five goals in four games.
Sims made it 2-0 in the 8th minute on a backward header off a pass by Sean Franklin. Davis scored in the 18th minute on a feed by Sims for a 3-0 lead.
The Seahorses struck back. Steven Lenhart fed Simon in the 20th minute for the first of his goals, then Farnsworth scored in the 37th minute on a pass by Colin Kilpatrick to cut the deficit to 3-2.
Sims scored the ultimate game-winning goal in the 45th minute, breaking away from the pack on a nice lead by Franklin to easily put the ball into the net.
In the 82nd minute, Seahorses midfielder Stephen Miller scored on a header off a cross by Snelgrove to put the host team within 4-3.
It is the first time in their seven seasons in the PDL that the Seahorses have opened the season with three losses.
Their next home match is against the San Francisco Seals on Saturday, May 26, 7 p.m. at La Mirada High School’s Goodman Stadium.
The Southern California Seahorses play in the USL Premier Development League, the only national league giving elite amateur players a professional experience within United Soccer Leagues while retaining their amateur status. Founded in 1983 as a club, the Seahorses have traveled to more than 30 countries. They draw many of their players from local colleges, clubs and international soccer programs.
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