Contentious win earns Bonanza Centennial rematch

Nick Christensen

Friday, Nov. 5, 2004 | 10:03 a.m.

Last year, it was Centennial's boys' soccer team that was putting up football scores on opponents.

The Bulldogs defeated Sierra Vista in the first round of the Sunset Region tournament 12-0, and went on to blow out Bonanza 7-1 in the semifinals.

This year, Bonanza has been the offensive powerhouse in the Sunset region. But in Thursday's semifinal against Clark, the Bengals almost looked more frustrated than confident.

With Bonanza up1-0 late in the game after Garrett Blizzard scored following a free kick, tensions started to boil over as Clark and Bonanza players exchanged verbal jabs and shoves in front of a crowd of inciting parents. School police came in and cooled the parents, and an overmatched cadre of three game officials attempted to separate the players.

Fortunately, time expired within a minute after the scrum, and the school police who had been keeping parents at bay instead herded players to their benches at the Bettye Wilson Soccer Complex.

"This was a war, an absolute gut-wrencher," Bonanza coach Gerald Kearney said. "The way these guys powered past Clark's team, they found a way to win, and kept their heads in it."

Clark coach Ignacio Luevano was less pleased, questioning the call that gave Bonanza its free kick.

"It was something they called over the back," he said. "The whole game, they were all over our backs."

Matthew Lavelle got the shutout for Bonanza. Jose Alvares was the goalkeeper for the Chargers.

Bonanza now gets a chance to avenge last year's elimination by Centennial when it faces the Bulldogs in the regional championship on Saturday morning. Centennial advanced by defeating rival Shadow Ridge 3-2 in a game that until late, the Bulldogs had well in hand.

Up 2-0 about midway through the second half, Nick Jackson put the Mustangs on the board when he sailed one by Centennial freshman goalie Chey McDonald. Not long after, McDonald bobbled another kick sent his way, which tied the game at 2 apiece.

Steve Chenes, who had already scored the Bulldogs' first two goals, logged the third in the last five minutes of the game to put his team up for good.

"We lost our competitiveness," Bulldogs coach Rick Kazee said of Shadow Ridge's comeback. "Our senior captain was the only one who stayed calm ... he and Bubba made a great game out of it."

"Bubba" was Barrett Farley, a defender who moved up the field due to a manpower shortage on the Bulldogs' bench. Farley had two goals and one assist in Centennial's 3-0 quarterfinal opener against Bishop Gorman.

Kazee will need to make more adjustments, as Dexter Smith, Chase Eisley, and Dustin Canada will all be unavailable for Saturday's championship game.

In the Sunrise semifinals also at Bettye Wilson, Green Valley defeated Northeast champion Chaparral 3-2 in overtime when James Cook scored in the 13th minute. James Bindrup and Drew Chesser had early goals for the Gators, but Oscar Molina and Ivan Perez both scored late in the second half.

Green Valley advances to the championship against Silverado, which beat Desert Pines 2-0 in the other semifinal. James Eshragh had goals in the third and 17th minutes to give the Skyhawks the early lead, and Ryan Whitesitt preserved the shutout.

Pahrump Valley and White Pine advanced in the 3A boys semifinals, and Boulder City and Faith Lutheran both moved on in the 3A girls matches. All four championship games will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at Bettye Wilson.