Pitman stuns MMC champ Modesto 3-2 in opening-round shocker

Even in defeat, Modesto High soccer coach Matt Mendes was looking at the big picture.

With the honor of his Panthers earning a No. 4 seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 playoffs, the highest for a Modesto Metro Conference champion since 2009, came the burden of proving the seed was worthy.

But Pitman, the third-place team in the Central California Conference, also played as if it had something to prove, and scored twice in the final 29 minutes to stun Modesto 3-2.

“This was devastating,” said Mendes, whose team finished the season with a stellar 16-3-5 record after going 10-1-1 in the MMC. “Our conference isn’t looked upon as very strong, and for us to get a 4 seed behind three really strong teams was nice. At least we were knocked out by a CCC team, but this outcome doesn’t do the MMC any favors, and that’s why I’m at a tough place right now.”

The Pride, 12-8-6 after going 6-5-4 in the CCC, advanced to meet No. 5 seed Oak Ridge on Thursday. Oak Ridge bumped off Monterey Trail 2-1 in another Tuesday playoff opener.

“We’ll be traveling, but this win will really help our confidence going into that game,” said Pitman coach Oscar Mercado, whose team reached the section semifinals a year ago before losing to eventual champion Granite Bay.

Confidence should not have been an issue for the Panthers, who breezed through the MMC season until dropping a 3-2 decision to Davis in the regular season finale. Mendes said he sensed something was missing, but wasn’t about to blame it on last week’s loss to the Spartans.

“For some reason, we didn’t carry any of the confidence or swagger that we earned into the game,” Mendes said. “It evaporated somehow. It would have been nice to end the regular season with some momentum, but we went into the Davis game knowing that no matter what the outcome it doesn’t change anything.

“We were looking toward this game and a deeper run. We played Davis hard, and I don’t think that outcome should have carried over.”

It would be difficult to make a case that Modesto was somehow bruised by last week’s loss, especially after the Panthers outshot Pitman 10-2 in the first half.

Pride goalie Jesus Nunez made four stops in the opening 40 minutes, including two acrobatic saves, to keep matters close, and Pitman was able to draw first blood 22 minutes into the action on its first scoring chance. Junior Miguel Galdamez was able to control a rebound on the right side, and Modesto keeper Anthony Mejia had no chance to stop his roller into the right corner of the net.

Despite dominating the action, the Panthers had to scramble to equalize before halftime, doing so when Julio Corona split two defenders just inside midfield on the dribble, the rolling a well-place shot past a charging Nunez with less than 40 seconds left before intermission.

When Modesto continued its pressure and took a 2-1 lead when Serafin Alberto scored off a pass from Artemio Contreras eight minutes into the second half, it appeared the Panthers were on their way.

Pitman continued to adjust on defense, spreading its backs to take away the Panthers’ outside attack.

“That was a champion squad we played tonight, and I had to get that through to our team that they needed to have the mentality to be tough,” Mercado said. “Modesto came out strong and forced us to make a lot of adjustments, especially to protect against the wide game they had, and it worked.”

The Pride needed only three minutes to tie the score, getting a steal and a push up the right side. A long cross missed the target, but senior Adolfo Maldonado controlled the ball deep in the left corner, took two dribbles toward the middle and found the net from a very short angle.

From that point on, Pitman dominated.

“As soon as Pitman tied it up, we were a different team and it wasn’t like we were trailing,” Mendes said. “As soon as they brought it back to 2-2, I had one of my players check himself out of the game, and not for an injury. This one is going to take a while for me to get over.”

The game-winner came in the 64th minute off a corner kick, when tall and lanky sophomore Anthony Zuno used his height advantage to redirect a deflected corner kick into the left side. Pitman not only had the lead, but iced the game by comtinuing to force the pace through the final whistle.

“This game could have gone either way, but we took advantage of our opportunities,” Mercado said. “A lot of factors contributed to the win, and above all the effort of the team was incredible.”

This story was originally published November 4, 2014 at 6:50 PM with the headline "Pitman stuns MMC champ Modesto 3-2 in opening-round shocker."