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A real Page turner
Forward Ben Page scores in final minute to give Seahorses 1-0 victory over Ventura County Fusion
LA MIRADA, Calif. (July 6, 2007) –Forward Ben Page, inserted into the game in the 82nd minute of the game, made his coach look like a genius by scoring in the 90th minute to give the Southern California Seahorses a 1-0 victory over the Ventura County Fusion in a USL Premier Development League soccer match Friday night at La Mirada High School.
Page, from Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn., turned quickly on the ball after teammate Jordan Arias bumped it into a rare clearing in the middle of the Fusion defense. Page slammed it from 18 yards into the lower left corner past Fusion goalkeeper Bryan Hill, who had played a stellar match.
The victory was the most significant of the season for the Seahorses (4-5-3). They had struggled to forge victories against the top teams in the PDL’s Southwest Division, and the Fusion (7-4-1) went into the match considered one of the main contenders for the division title.
But the Seahorses shut down the Fusion’s star forward, Mark Draycott, one of the leading scorers in the nation. Draycott never had a good chance at the net against Seahorse defenders Daniel Young, John Lee, Justin Farnsworth and Marius Rus.
Meanwhile, Seahorses midfielders Evan Cox, Jordan Arias and J.T. Searles won their share of one-on-one battles to set up a Seahorses attack that outshot the Fusion, 10-8, for the game.
Most of the best scoring chances of the game belonged to the Seahorses. For example, Page nearly scored two minutes before his game-winner when he blasted an arcing shot from 25 yards that just curled right of the net. In the first half, forward Chris Leiva made two strong shots, one that sailed just over the crossbar and another that forced Hill to make a diving stop.
Seahorses goalkeeper Greg Larson played solidly when challenged. He wrapped up Draycott at the top of the goal box before the Fusion star could unload a shot during a semi-breakaway situation in the 12th minute. In the 28th minute, Larson made a two-handed diving swat of a point-blank shot that was deflected by a Seahorses player.
The Seahorses play the San Fernando Valley Quakes on Friday, July 13, at 7 p.m. at Granada Hills High School before returning home to face the Orange County Blue Star on July 18 at La Mirada High School (7 p.m.).
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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