Tight matches have become commonplace in Pacific League boys soccer.
Thursday night that held true when Burbank hosted Crescenta Valley.
Both teams were solid throughout, allowing few chances.
In the end it was a controversial penalty kick that allowed the Falcons to prevail, 1-0.
“If you don’t score and put away your chances you leave the other team that chance of getting the go-ahead goal,” Burbank coach Johnny Rotunno said. “I knew it was going to happen. We had a break down. We lost the ball in the midfield. They went on a counter attack. The guys were one-one-one fighting for the ball. That’s what happens. I’ve seen refs go back to where the original foul was. It has happened to me a million times, but not today.”
Burbank (11-4-3 overall, 2-3-1 in league) will now need to defeat Burroughs next Tuesday and hope that the remaining Pacific League results fall in their favor.
“It’s a tight race. We’re in a position where we need this team to beat that team,” Rotunno said. “We’re not in the position we want to be. We didn’t win the games we needed to win.”
CV (7-3-1 overall, 4-1 in league) earned the penalty kick when Falcon attacker Leon Einhaus went shoulder to shoulder with Burbank’s Raffi Harutyunyan on a breakaway. The initial contact between the two occurred outside the penalty area. Einhaus eventually fell in the goal box, which was enough to convince the center referee, who was far from the play to point the penalty spot.
Solemon Alveno-Donofrio converted the penalty kick for the Falcons after Harutyunyan was given a red card by virtue of being the last man back on defense.
Burbank’s best opportunity in the first half came in the 20th minute when Andre Zargaryan took a left-footed shot well outside the goal box that nearly hit the right post of the Falcon goal.
CV nearly scored three minutes into the second half when Einhaus had a fine left-footed shot that Burbank goalie Erik Antanesyan made a superb save on.
The Bulldogs also had a great chance in the 58th minute when a shot by Arthur Tovmasyan was cleared off the line by the CV defense.
Antanesyan came up huge, saving another shot from Einhaus in the 63rd minute.
Burbank’s Aram Hovanessian had a chance in the 69th minute, but was denied by Falcon goalie Serge Odabashian.
