Kelseyville varsity boys shut out St. Helena for first North Central League I victory
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LAKEPORT >> Goals by Julio Lopez in the first half and Tony Rivas in the second half carried the Kelseyville High School varsity boys soccer team to a 2-0 North Central League I win over the St. Helena Saints on Tuesday at Clear Lake High School in Lakeport.
“A lot of firsts tonight,” Kelseyville head coach KC White said. “First shutout of the season, first career goal for my senior captain, Tony Rivas, and my first win as a coach versus St. Helena.”
White could have also added first league win for the Knights (1-2-1 league, 2-13-3 overall), and their second victory of the season.
“We started really sluggish today, but we eventually found a rhythm,” White said. “About halfway through the first half, after getting multiple chances, we finally broke through. Diego Rico does what he does and put a beautiful corner kick into the box. Julio Lopez put it in the back of the net go give us the lead versus St. Helena, something we haven’t had since 2023.”
The score remained 1-0 until the 79th minute.
“We got a free kick from about 40 yards out,” White said. “Tony Rivas took the opportunity with a lead and smashed it over the keeper’s head. That’s probably something he couldn’t have done had we been behind, so I’m happy we finally had the lead so he could take that chance.”
Added White,” We finally had a game where we didn’t make a mistake. It was a near-perfect game from my defense (Rivas, Jonathan Gonzalez, Jake Smart, Carlos Mendoza and Jorge Gonzalez). It was a complete game by my whole team tonight, but my goalie deserves a shoutout. Cameron Smith was really good tonight. I felt really comfortable with him back there.”
Kelseyville returns to action Tuesday against Roseland University Prep at Clear Lake High School in Lakeport.