Huskies Persevere Through Stormy Downpour to Beat Compton, Likely Clinch State Playoff Spot

by Cerwin D Haynes

(thumbnail by Stephen Morales)

East LA Men's Soccer braved the sometimes-heavy downpour of rains along with whipping winds to face Compton College in the South Coast Conference 7th Place Final this afternoon at Compton. Perhaps pride would be enough reason for the team to fight through the elements for a consolation bracket, but these Huskies had a shot at something much more significant: one of the 16 berths in the SoCal Region of the CCCAA Playoffs.

"Usually, I have to get them out of the locker room," said head coach Eddie Flores when talking about getting his team ready to take the field before a game.

"But not today - they were focused and ready."

And they used every once of that focus to beat the wind, the rain, the chilly temperatures, and most importantly - their host opponents. MF Anco Veigo (he of the historic four-goal game in last week's win over PCC) scored a 10-ft tapped off the left side in the 41', and D Alexander Guevara booted a PK past Tartars goalie Isaac Estrada during extra penalty time at the end of regulation to blank the Tartars 2-0.

ELAC secures a seventh place finish in the SCC Tournament. Furthermore, they finish the season with 37.50 Power Points, the ranking system that best determines the top teams that move on to the state playoffs. As of this writing, their point values appears to qualify them one of the 16 seeds in the SoCal bracket.

HUSKY BITS

• Veigo, the freshman from Brazil, now has five goals for the season which leads the team.
• Guevara's goal was his first of the season.

UP NEXT:

The Huskies will learn in the coming days of their seeding, which includes who they play, where, and when. Possible playoffs projected start date could be Saturday, November 19. Stay tuned to ELAC & Men's Soccer social media accounts for formal playoff announcements.