Free Kick

With winds wreaking havoc on Tuesday's CIF Southern California Division I Regional Championship opener, the Crescenta Valley High boys' soccer team needed to take advantage of any edge it could to find a scoring opportunity. Alex Berger did just that for the Falcons when the senior midfielder booted in a free kick in the 17th minute for which there would never be an answer, as the Falcons defeated host Central Section Division I champion Buchanan of Clovis, 1-0, to advance to the second round on Thursday.

Jim Riggio GLENDALE SPORTS COMPLEX -- If Crescenta Valley High is going to win the Pacific League boys' soccer title, the Falcons won't be able to do so if they play like they did in their league opener against Hoover High Thursday. The Tornadoes outplayed the Falcons, but were unable to find the net, and thus lost, 1-0, at the Glendale Sports Complex. "We just did not play good at all," CV Coach Bill Papagno said. "We won ugly, but it's a win."

The top-10 individual performances by an athlete in a team setting from the 2011-12 season were voted on by the Glendale News-Press sports department. 1 Hakop Kaplanyan dries up Palm Desert, Nov. 12, 2011 - Once the Hoover High boys' water polo team received a last-second reprieve on the end of its season, its senior leader didn't let it go to waste. Kaplanyan scored a game-tying goal to complete a comeback from down five goals and send the Tornadoes' CIF Southern Section Division IV quarterfinal match against Palm Desert at Burbank High to overtime moments after a timekeeping error resulted in a replay of the final 30 seconds.

Jim Riggio GLENDALE SPORTS COMPLEX -- If the Crescenta Valley High girls' soccer team learned one thing Thursday afternoon it was that the Falcons can play with the best in the CIF Southern Section. Facing their toughest league opponent in defending league champion Arcadia, the Falcons battled to 0-0 tie at the Glendale Sports Complex. "There is no question we played our best game," CV Coach Bud Dain said. "It was so close, so tight. There is no love lost between CV and Arcadia.

Jim Riggio HOOVER HIGH -- Bad breaks happen in sports and in soccer it takes just one to cost a team a contest. It took just one handball in the goal box by Glendale High to send the Nitros home on a losing end, as the host Hoover High boys' soccer team earned 1-0 Pacific League victory Thursday. Hoover (6-7-4, 2-3) scored the lone goal of the match in the 42nd minute, as a cross by Rafi Pogosyan hit the hand of Glendale's Nick Varga, resulting in a penalty kick.

LA CRESCENTA - While battling pain in both of his calves, Pavle Atanackovic seemingly needed to find another way to score. The Crescenta Valley High boys' soccer player used his head, lifting the Falcons to a first-round playoff victory. Atanackovic scored three goals on headers - including the match-winning tally three minutes into sudden-death overtime - to propel host Crescenta Valley to a 3-2 CIF Southern Section Division IV win against Laguna Beach on Thursday afternoon.

BURBANK - There were hard fouls, stoppages with players on the ground crying in pain and complaints of the referees from both sidelines. And, oh, there were also high stakes in the race for the Pacific League championship. The Crescenta Valley High and Burroughs girls' soccer teams played an intense match Friday, with the officials allowing most of the physical play to continue without whistles. In the 80th and final minute, the Falcons and Indians settled for a 1-1 tie at Burroughs' Memorial Field.

LOS ANGELES -- On an evening full of golden scoring opportunities, what seemed unlikely was that a close-range goal in the opening minutes of a girls' soccer match between area rivals Crescenta Valley High and Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy would end being all that separated the two powers. Yet, a five-yard header from Tologs senior striker Hailey James in the sixth minute turned out to be the match-winner as Sacred Heart defeated Crescenta Valley, 1-0, in nonleague action Saturday evening at Occidental College's Jack Kemp Stadium.

PASADENA — The Flintridge Prep girls’ soccer team hoped to ride a wave of momentum from a big win on Friday into Saturday’s Prep League contest against Westridge. Rebels Coach Esteban Chavez said his team’s 3-0 win over the Tigers Saturday at Maranatha High came more in spite of the previous day’s monumental defeat of Chadwick than because of it. “We didn’t really take control of the game until the end,” said Chavez, whose team moved closer to solidifying at least a third-place finish in league with the win. “They got drained emotionally, physically and psychologically yesterday because they left everything [on the field]

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE — While the game seemed all but over after the first 10 minutes of the second half, the final 10 minutes of Thursday’s Pacific League girls’ soccer match between Hoover High and host Glendale had all the intensity and action befitting the most heated rivalry in town. After getting within a goal of the Nitros, whom they had once trailed by as many as three goals, the Tornadoes perked up and honed in on the tying tally with eight minutes left to play.

ARCADIA - It was 40 minutes of infamy that ultimately led to the conclusion of four years of supremacy. With a fifth consecutive Pacific League championship in the balance, Crescenta Valley High's girls' soccer team saw its title hopes spiral downward as archrival Arcadia scored three second-half goals to end the Falcons' four-year run as league champs with a 4-0 Apaches win on Thursday afternoon at Arcadia City Hall Park. “I thought it was a very evenly matched game,” said Falcons Coach Jorden Schulz, “and then all hell broke loose.” Down 1-0 after a late second-half goal by Janila Lynn following a corner kick scrum, Crescenta Valley (13-4-2, 11-2-1 in league)

BURBANK - There were hard fouls, stoppages with players on the ground crying in pain and complaints of the referees from both sidelines. And, oh, there were also high stakes in the race for the Pacific League championship. The Crescenta Valley High and Burroughs girls' soccer teams played an intense match Friday, with the officials allowing most of the physical play to continue without whistles. In the 80th and final minute, the Falcons and Indians settled for a 1-1 tie at Burroughs' Memorial Field.

LA CRESCENTA - Though it's still early in the Pacific League girls' soccer season, leading into Friday's first-place showdown between visiting Burroughs High and Crescenta Valley, the teams had built up plenty of statistical intrigue to bolster the match. Combining for six wins to no league losses along with a combined 40 goals to just one given up, the Falcons and Indians' collective body of work had been daunting. On a cold and windy Friday afternoon at Crescenta Valley, though, the only statistic that mattered was Sierra Rhoads' goal in the 69th minute, as the senior midfielder's strike held for a 1-0 victory for the Falcons over the Indians.

LA CRESCENTA - While the more arduous tests of the Pacific League are likely still ahead, Crescenta Valley High's girls' soccer team has seemingly hit its stride. At least during its current run, evidenced further by Monday's performance, as the Falcons, led by two goals from senior Sierra Rhoads, won their fifth straight game with their fourth consecutive shutout in the form of a 5-0 thumping of Glendale in a league tilt at Crescenta Valley High. “Overall, I'm happy with the progress we're making,” said Falcons Coach Jorden Schulz, whose team improved to 5-2-1, 2-0 in league and will face Burbank on Wednesday.

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE - Glendale High boy's soccer Coach Arthur Aghasyan called it a statement win. Aghasyan's sentiments came on the heels of an impressive victory for the Nitros over the La Cañada, which started the season winning eight of 10 games and is ranked fifth in CIF Southern Section Division V. The Nitros, on the flip side, have struggled this season, but executed well against the Spartans in a physical, scrappy contest that saw Glendale...

PASADENA - While the passing was sloppy, communication lacked and mother nature interfered with modest rain, there wasn't much that separated the Crescenta Valley High and La Salle girls' soccer teams - except for perhaps one hustle play. A rebound goal from senior Katie Callister in the first minute of extra time accounted for the offense in Friday's nonleague affair as the visiting Falcons defeated the Lancers, 1-0, at Kohorst Field. “La Salle is very good and they have a lot of things going, so it was nice to get a win,” Crescenta Valley Coach Jorden Schulz said.

LOS ANGELES -- On an evening full of golden scoring opportunities, what seemed unlikely was that a close-range goal in the opening minutes of a girls' soccer match between area rivals Crescenta Valley High and Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy would end being all that separated the two powers. Yet, a five-yard header from Tologs senior striker Hailey James in the sixth minute turned out to be the match-winner as Sacred Heart defeated Crescenta Valley, 1-0, in nonleague action Saturday evening at Occidental College's Jack Kemp Stadium.

The top-10 individual performances by an athlete in a team setting from the 2011-12 season were voted on by the Glendale News-Press sports department. 1 Hakop Kaplanyan dries up Palm Desert, Nov. 12, 2011 - Once the Hoover High boys' water polo team received a last-second reprieve on the end of its season, its senior leader didn't let it go to waste. Kaplanyan scored a game-tying goal to complete a comeback from down five goals and send the Tornadoes' CIF Southern Section Division IV quarterfinal match against Palm Desert at Burbank High to overtime moments after a timekeeping error resulted in a replay of the final 30 seconds.

With winds wreaking havoc on Tuesday's CIF Southern California Division I Regional Championship opener, the Crescenta Valley High boys' soccer team needed to take advantage of any edge it could to find a scoring opportunity. Alex Berger did just that for the Falcons when the senior midfielder booted in a free kick in the 17th minute for which there would never be an answer, as the Falcons defeated host Central Section Division I champion Buchanan of Clovis, 1-0, to advance to the second round on Thursday.

Just a throw-in away from the Crescenta Valley High soccer field are several concrete walls. Most of the time, nearby residents occupy the territory to smash or loft tennis balls. For Crescenta Valley boys' soccer player Alex Berger, he's got other ideas concerning how to use the walls to help him improve athletically. Over the past couple of seasons, the standout senior midfielder has spent several hours a week practicing free kicks against the wall. He's found a target on the walls, pretending that it's a teammate.