Los Altos using its head Los Altos using its head (January 13, 2006)

Boys soccer squad shows its versatility in 5-2 win over Saratoga

By Greg Hancock

The Los Altos High School boys soccer team is as versatile as they come.

The result, in the early part of this season, is a team with no ego problems or any one player trying to do too much on the field. There is not one star, per se, on the roster, but with a solid all-around squad, the Eagles appear to be a team nobody is going to want to face come playoff time or leading up to CCS.

In Tuesday's game against Saratoga, Los Altos flexed its offensive muscles and used a three-goal first-half outburst to take control early en route to a solid 5-2 win against the Falcons.

There simply is no one player that an opponent can focus on with this team. On Tuesday's game, five different Eagles scored goals in the win.

The Eagles grabbed an early 1-0 when Nery Martinez headed in a crossing pass from Thibaud Duprat 12 minutes into the match. This was only the beginning, as the Los Altos offense followed up with more offensive fireworks.

After Darren Sweetman scored the second Eagles goal at the 34-minute mark with an impressive one-timer shot, it took less than a minute for the combination of Sweetman and Danny Kohler to tally another goal. Both players broke free behind the Falcons defense for a 2-on-1 break. Sweetman made the final pass to Kohler for an easy goal that increased the lead to 3-0.

"We had two freshmen score," Sweetman said, "Parker [Spielman] and my brother [James]. We've been having trouble in the past with goals, but we kind of broke out today and had a good game."

Los Altos has learned the art of ball control from its coach, Vava Marquez. The Eagles precision passing keeps opponents from getting possession, causing frustration to build. The frustration for Saratoga was evident as the Falcons were whistled for numerous fouls on the day, including one yellow card.

"We've been focusing on the important skills and how to move the ball," said Danny Kohler. "Controlling the ball is just one of the keys to penetrating the other team."

After the first half, the younger Sweetman brother, freshman James, made sure his team did not lose the momentum. Only one minute into the second half, he pounded a deep ball deflected off the Saratoga goalie into the net for a 4-1 lead, essentially ending the game.

Saratoga did play better in the second half. The Falcons dramatically out-shot the Eagles 14-2 in the half, but the deficit was too great. In those 14 shots, the Falcons did manage to find the back of the net twice.

Neema Haghshenas scored both Falcons goals. The first came on a penalty shot early in the half. Haghshenas later scored his second goal when he beat goalie Kieran McMeekin. McMeekin did, however, stop 15 out of 17 shots that came his way during the match.

Following the game, Sweetman discussed what it's like playing with his younger brother.

"It's weird," he said laughing. "We kind of know what the other is doing ahead of time sometimes. We don't have to talk much. We can read each other's body language real well."

Sweetman then discussed his role on the team.

"Since it's my senior year, I felt like I had to step up and take more of a verbal leadership role," he said. "I know that these guys look up to me, so even though I've been quiet in the past, I felt like I had to set the bar a bit higher with my leadership this year."

Now 4-0 in league and 7-2-1 overall, players are feeling their confidence building daily. The team traveled to Los Gatos on Thursday (after the Voice went to press) for another key league game.

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