Apple Valley does it again, beats Oak Park to reach the CIF SoCal Div. 3 title game

The goalkeeper is the loneliest position on the pitch in soccer.

They dress differently than the rest of their teammates. They train differently than their teammates. They are also the final stop before a goal for the opposing team.

No matter what happens in the moments before a goal, a goalkeeper can often be blamed, externally and/or internally, when the ball gets past them and in for a goal.

Apple Valley goalkeeper Sofia Hernandez blamed herself for the two goals that Oak Park scored against her Thursday night in the semifinals of the CIF State Southern California Regional Division 3 playoffs.

After both teams ended regulation and a 15-minute overtime period tied 2-2, Hernandez got a chance to make things better.

Both teams nailed their first two penalty kicks. Apple Valley’s Sarah Fort sunk her kick to go up 3-2.

Oak Park’s Macie Baird went to take her shot but slipped a little as she connected with the ball. The ball went straight on the ground to Hernandez as she picked it up for the save.

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Apple Valley head coach Nicole Stephens and captain Alia Collins both said they knew they were gonna win from that point but Hernandez still had her doubts.

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“It’s still anybody’s game during PKs and so during that save and was like, “Okay, we’re up,” but I still have to prepare myself mentally to help the team out,” Hernandez said.

Fortunately for Hernandez, the rest of the team had her back as they scored the next two penalty kicks to beat Oak Park again and advance to the finals.

“I’m relieved honestly because I felt those two goals were my fault but after the PK’s and saving one, it made me feel better and more hyped for my team,” Hernandez said.

Road warriors

The victory meant a celebration on Oak Park’s pitch twice in the span of six days. The teams met for the CIF-Southern Section Division 3 championship game on Feb. 23, with the Sun Devils pulling off a 2-1 victory.

The first 30 minutes Thursday night looked similar to Apple Valley’s games in the past few weeks. They maintained possession of the ball, put some shots in, and generally controlled the flow of the game.

“The first 30 minutes were great. We knew that Oak Park was gonna come out hard, they wanted to make a point,” Stephens said.

It led to a goal by captain Samantha Most off her left foot that cleared the Oak Park goalkeeper Ainsley Gove.

But Oak Park started fighting back immediately and tied the game three minutes after Most’s goal off of a free kick.

The second half continued with Oak Park threatening with free kicks. With 23 minutes remaining in the second half, Oak Park took the lead with a goal from Gwen Gove.

For the first time in this playoff run, the Sun Devils were down.

Freshman Jadyn Bechtel, who missed the first round game due to being at a United States Youth National Team camp, created chances on the left wing but nothing was successful.

With Apple Valley winning their last two games on last-minute goals against Oak Park and Quartz Hill, the team would do it again.

Bechtel carried the ball down the left wing and into the box where she crossed it right in front of the goal. Fort headed it down to land in front of Collins.

“I knew from this moment that I have to score this. I came into the game telling myself, ‘I’m gonna score today and we’re gonna win this game,” Collins said.

Collins blew the ball into the net to tie the game for another last-minute goal.

“I’m just continuously amazed by these girls and their fight and their drive to continue to keep pushing until the last moment,” Stephens said.

They said it

Collins on her mindset when taking a penalty kick: “You have to tell yourself you are going to score. I used to doubt myself and now I’ve gotten so much more confident and I tell myself I’m going to make it.”

Hernandez on her mindset in saving a penalty kick: “I try to look at their body shape because their body shape tells me a lot about where they are going to kick but I also base it off the first two goals depending on which way they shoot because that defines how the rest of the team is gonna shoot. I noticed that they all shoot left so I had the idea to think left.”

What’s next

Win or lose, Apple Valley’s season will officially end on Saturday, on the road, against Granada Hills Charter in the championship match. The Sun Devils are looking to capture the first CIF State girls soccer championship since Oak Hills did so in 2020.

Apple Valley comes into it already as CIF-SS Division 3 champions, while Granada Hills Charter lost in the semifinals of the LA City Section against El Camino Real.

“Our goal this year was to win the Division 3 Southern Section so everything after that is the cherry on top,” Stephens said.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Apple Valley's historic postseason continues with a victory in PKs