Despite overturned golden goal, Aberdeen beats Shelton on penalty kicks

After Oropeza’s game-winner was reversed due to an offside call, Bobcats win 4-2 on penalty kicks

By Ryan Sparks • April 29, 2024 1:30 am
DAILY WORLD FILE PHOTO Aberdeen senior midfielder Ruben Oropeza had what appeared to be a golden goal in overtime reversed by an offside call in the Bobcats’ 1-0 victory (4-2 on penalty kicks) on Thursday in Shelton.
DAILY WORLD FILE PHOTO Aberdeen senior midfielder Ruben Oropeza had what appeared to be a golden goal in overtime reversed by an offside call in the Bobcats’ 1-0 victory (4-2 on penalty kicks) on Thursday in Shelton.

The Aberdeen Bobcats haven’t had much luck in three previous penalty-kick shootouts leading into Thursday’s matchup against Shelton, losing in each instance.

Turned out the fourth time was the charm as Aberdeen defeated Shelton 1-0 – 4-2 on penalty kicks – to earn a key 2A Evergreen Conference victory in Shelton.

Aberdeen (7-7 overall, 6-5 2A Evergreen) found the footing tough on the Highclimbers’ wet turf as the game went into overtime a scoreless tie.

“Defensively, we played well and didn’t give them a lot of chances,” said Aberdeen head coach Larry Fleming, who pointed out the performances of senior co-captain Isaiah Johnson and junior defender Angel Espinoza on defense. “It’s tough. Every surface we play on is a little different and with the rain on their turf, it was quick. Our guys had a tough time controlling the ball and Shelton played pretty well. They’ve definitely improved.”

With approximately 30 seconds left in the second 5-minute overtime, the Bobcats appeared to score what was the game-winning golden goal when senior forward Elmer Torres headed a ball across to senior midfielder Ruben Oropeza, who one-touched it into the net, but the linesman called the play offside despite being approximately 20-yards off the Shelton backline and out of position to make the call.

The decision nullified the goal and prematurely ended a jubilant Bobcats celebration on the sideline.

In the penalty-kick shootout, Aberdeen’s Evan Cone, Edgar Ceja and Torres made their shots and one Bobats attempt was blocked.

Cats keeper Evan Sanchez blocked the first kick he saw followed by a Shelton shot that missed wide on the second attempt. After a Shelton conversion, Sanchez dove to get his hand on another Highclimbers attempt, staking the Cats to a 3-2 lead with one Aberdeen attempt left.

The game came down to Aberdeen junior midfielder Marc Avila, who scored on Aberdeen’s fifth attempt to give the Bobcats their first PK-shootout win in four tries this season.

“We were like ‘Oh God, here we go again,’” Aberdeen head coach Larry Fleming said of the shootout before turning his attention to the league standings. “(The win) was pretty crucial. … Shelton was only a game behind us, so this would have been a big loss. This ensured us the playoffs.”

With the win, Aberdeen secured no worse than a fourth-place finish in the league and moved 1.5 games up on Rochester and two games ahead of Shelton in the 2A EvCo standings.

The Cats sit in fourth place, a half-game behind Centralia in the loss column.

Aberdeen hosts Centralia at 7 p.m. Monday, which will be the Bobcats’ Senior Night and Youth Soccer Night game.

The Bobcats JV team won 4-1, with Gibran Garcia, Trino Villar, Ben Garcia and Marc Avila scoring goal for Aberdeen.

The Cats C-team lost 6-1. Wyatt Glaefke scored for Aberdeen with goal keeper Anthony Chavez making a penalty-kick save for the Bobcats.

Aberdeen 0 0 0 0 1 – 1

Shelton 0 0 0 0 0 – 0

Scoring

First half – none.

Second half – none.

Overtime – none.

Penalty kicks – Aberdeen 4 (Cone, Ceja, E. Torres, Avila). Shelton 2.