Central Union had not allowed a goal in the CIF San Diego Section playoffs, outscoring its three opponents 14-0.
Friday night’s section title game was much of the same.
The top-seeded Spartans jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a penalty kick goal by senior captain Angel Sandoval and never looked back on the way to a 2-0 victory over sixth-seeded Orange Glen to secure the Division 3 section championship.
“Orange Glen is a very good team,” said Central Union head coach Alonso Garcia, whose team had not made a section final in 36 years.
Sandoval said getting on board was vital, especially when his team set the pace.
“It was very important,” the Spartans senior said. “I needed to give my team confidence. Three weeks ago, I knew I missed the (penalty kick) against Imperial, an important penalty. I knew I wasn’t going to miss it twice.
“I knew I had the confidence.”
Central Union’s back line and goalkeeper Gavin Lillegard made sure the ball did not find the back of the net.
“He came on board a little later in the season,” Garcia said of Lillegard. “For him to be able to step back and build that rhythm that when the team needed to be there for us, he was big for us tonight.
“We tell the team, ‘Defense wins championships.’ That’s exactly what happened.”
The last time Central Union (24-2-4, 7-1-2 Imperial Valley League) allowed a goal was on Feb. 11 against Calexico, who is playing in Saturday’s Division 1 championship game at Bonita Vista.
The Spartans (15-5-2, 6-3-1 Coastal League) carried their one-goal lead into the second half.
Then in the 59th minute, Central Union doubled the score on a goal by senior Joseph Rosas. Rosas, who scored its 21st goal of the season, took the ball on the right side and split two defenders before getting the ball into the net.
Sandoval said with him and Rosas scoring, in addition to senior Mishel Villanueva’s 36 goals, which leads the section, according to MaxPreps, it makes the Spartans hard to defend.
“When teams put three people on someone, there’s always two other guys that you could play with,” Sandoval said. “I’m so glad and so grateful to have so many talented players in my team.”
Orange Glen had opportunities to try and get back in the game. Before Central Union doubled its score, freshman Cristian Morales had a look before missing high in the 45th minute.
In addition, Patriots junior David Riviera had two shots at the net in the 64th and 66th minutes, respectively.
Both teams’ top goal scorers were unable to find the net. In addition to Villanueva, Orange Glen senior Ismael Zavala ranks fourth in the section with 26 goals, according to MaxPreps.
With the win, Central Union will wait to hear its name when the CIF Southern California Regional pairings are announced Sunday.
