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Tigers open Division 3 soccer playoffs with win. LHS welcomes No. 6 seed Porterville Thursday
The Tigers are 16-6-3 overall, fashioning a 6-2-2 record in the West Yosemite League and earning a No. 3 ranking in the Division 3 playoffs. They will host No. 6 Porterville in a 6 p.m. game tomorrow (Thursday, Feb. 13). The winner will advance to the semifinals and play the winner of the Mission Oak (No. 7) and Highland (No. 2) matchup.
"Our team is pleased with our first-round victory, but we obviously wish to take it much further," said Eric Bow, Lemoore's head coach.
Porterville defeated Selma 3-1 in the first round for the right to take on the surging Tigers.
On a cool Tuesday night in Tiger Stadium, Lemoore struck first with a pair of goals in the first half and added one more for the 3-1 win.
It was Lemoore’s Pablo Gomez and Matt Ramirez scoring first-half goals to take the early lead, while Diego Nunez slipped the ball past Templeton’s defenders late in the contest to account for Lemoore’s overall tally.
Tigers close out WYL campaign with pair of wins
A pair of second-half goals from Lemoore’s Pablo Gomez and Diego Nunez powered the Tigers past Hanford 2-1 in the team’s final regular-season contest on Thursday (Feb. 6). Lemoore also defeated Mt. Whitney High School 6-1 earlier in the week (Feb. 4) to complete a 6-2-2 West Yosemite League campaign, good enough for second place – behind 7-2-1 Golden West.
Thanks to their impressive play, the Tigers earned a three seed in the Division 3 Central Section playoffs, which begin on Tuesday (Feb. 11) in a home contest against visiting Templeton (No. 14 seed). Game time is 6 p.m. in Tiger Stadium.
Overall the Tigers completed an impressive 15-6-3 season, and if they defeat Templeton on Tuesday, they’ll play the winner of the Porterville and Selma matchup in Lemoore on Thursday.
Against Mt. Whitney, Lemoore scored four times in the first period and twice in the second half to crush the Pioneers 6-1. Mat Ramirez did the most damage, scoring three times and assisting with another pair of goals.
Pablo Gomez, Damian Morales, and Diego Nunez all scored in the Tigers’ lopsided win Tuesday night in Tiger Stadium.
Templeton, a member school of the Central Coast Athletic Association, comes into Tuesday’s contest sporting an 11-8 record and a 9-3 mark in league play.
