Mission Prep girls soccer opens CIF playoffs with 9-2 rout of Highland
The Mission Prep girls soccer team picked a good time for its best game of the season.
Mission Prep scored a season-high nine goals in its wild card playoff game against Highland (Palmdale) and moved on to the first round of the CIF-Southern Section playoffs with a 9-2 win on Tuesday afternoon in San Luis Obispo.
Junior captain Emily Riforgiate scored three first-half goals for her first-ever hat trick.
“Our game is to play the little through balls because we have so many fast players in the front,” said Riforgiate, who had scored only four goals on the season heading into Tuesday’s game.
The attack worked. Once Mission Prep (14-7-3, 7-4-3 PAC 8) figured out how to beat Highland’s offsides trap, the goals followed in quick succession.
Mission Prep junior Marissa Cortese opened the scoring with a header two minutes in. Following a goal by Highland’s McKenna Nowak, Riforgiate got her first goal on a header off a corner kick.
2 mins in @MPAthletics scores off a corner to open playoffs. Marissa Cortese scores. Royals up 1-0 over Highland. pic.twitter.com/gKxQR3RYt6
— Travis Gibson (@TravisDgibson) February 16, 2016
“Emily is scrappy, so, wherever there is a chance to score, you know she is going to be involved — which is what I love about her,” Mission Prep assistant coach Sandy Oceguera said.
Two corner kicks, two goals for @MPAthletics. This one by Emily Riforgiate. pic.twitter.com/a9RCPaJUHt
— Travis Gibson (@TravisDgibson) February 16, 2016
Mission Prep senior Sammi Fernandez scored two goals in the first half, including a laser from 30 yards out on a free kick. Mission Prep held an 8-1 halftime lead.
“It felt kind of rewarding after putting all this hard work in,” Riforgiate said.
Mission Prep’s leading goal scorer, sophomore Emma Kuchinski, had two goals, and Camryn Stout added another.
Mission Prep’s previous season high was five goals.
“Scoring has been a little bit of a challenge for us this season, so it was really nice that we got to open the floodgates a little bit,” Oceguera said. “Hopefully that carries over to Thursday and they remember what that feels like.”
Mission Prep’s reward for a seven-goal win: a nearly four-hour drive to West Covina for a game against South Hill, the No. 1 overall seed in Division 3 in the first round. The game is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start Thursday.
This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 7:44 PM with the headline "Mission Prep girls soccer opens CIF playoffs with 9-2 rout of Highland."