Legionnaires fall short in game for soccer league championship

Joe Naiman

Village News Reporter

Had Bonsall High School’s soccer team defeated High Tech Mesa in those two teams’ Feb. 8 match in Bonsall, the Legionnaires would have won the Pioneer League championship. A 2-0 High Tech Mesa victory gave the Thunder a 5-0-1 final league record and the league championship while Bonsall settled for a 4-1-1 league record and second place.

Bonsall’s overall record for the season was 6-7-2; the Legionnaires closed out play with a 2-2 tie Feb. 9 at home against Guajome Park Academy and a 3-2 home loss Feb. 10 against Army-Navy Academy.

“We enjoyed some big victories this season in tight games. We also had some emotional defeats,” said Bonsall coach Francisco Camarena. “Ultimately we came up a little bit short.”

Bonsall began the season Nov. 30 with a 7-2 win at Coastal Academy and then lost three consecutive games. League play began Jan. 5 with a 14-1 home victory Jan. 11 against River Valley. Matthew Esposito scored six goals and added three assists, Tomas Sanchez provided four goals and three assists, and Colin McKinney contributed four assists.

Esposito also had six goals and three assists in a 13-1 home triumph Jan. 13 against King-Chavez Community. McKinney had a goal and five assists in that game. The Legionnaires extended their winning streak to three Jan. 19 with a 2-0 non-league win at Guajome Park Academy.

High Tech Mesa and Bonsall first played Jan. 20 at High Tech Mesa. The Thunder scored the only first-half goal, but in the second half Esposito scored the equalizer and the game ended as a 1-1 tie.

Esposito had six goals and three assists Jan. 27 at River Valley while McKinney scored twice and provided four assists. Bonsall scored eight times in the first half and defeated the Snow Leopards by an 11-0 margin. Bonsall goalkeeper David Moynedo recorded four saves in the shutout.

After two non-league losses, the Legionnaires returned to league play Feb. 4 at home against King-Chavez. The 8-0 victory over the Vaqueros included two goals apiece by Esposito, McKinney, Sanchez, and Jamie Keen. McKinney had three assists while Esposito and David Montejo added two assists apiece. The win gave Bonsall a 4-0-1 league record entering the game against High Tech Mesa.

The Thunder held a 1-0 halftime lead in the second game. “In the pursuit of trying to go for the tie, we moved some players to try to get us that tying goal,” Camarena said. “You’ve got to make that attempt to try to be successful.”

That meant sacrificing defense, but the Legionnaires had opportunities to score the equalizer before the Thunder scored their second goal. “We came really close a couple of times to tying it,” Camarena said.

A loss is a loss whether by a 1-0 score or a 2-0 margin, so Camarena had no choice but to focus on offense even though it reduced Bonsall’s defensive options.

Bonsall’s 15-player roster consisted of five seniors, one sophomore, and nine freshmen. “At the end of the day we were able to make some really good memories,” Camarena said.

Camarena believes he had more support from non-players than in past years. “In all my seasons, I think this is the most participation we’ve had from the parents,” he said. “That was a good thing for the kids.”