CCC soccer title, playoffs still up for grabs

Baylee Lawry is all too familiar with the scenario.

The Merced High School girls soccer team has flirted with earning its first Central California Conference title each of the last two years, only to come up four points short. And Lawry, a stalwart on the back end, has endured each heartbreak.

Last season was particularly cruel, with the Bears 10 minutes away from the crown when rival Golden Valley notched a late equalizer in the final game of the regular season, denying Merced the title by a single point.

It’s a scenario the Bears know could repeat itself if they don’t finish things this time around, as the always unpredictable CCC remains up for grabs heading into the final week of the regular season.

Pitman (14-5-5, 9-0-4 CCC) enters the week with a one-point lead over Merced (9-10-3, 9-1-3). The two will meet Tuesday afternoon with the Pride trying to lock up the title. A Bears win would put them on top but leave little time to celebrate as they’ll possibly face a desperate Golden Valley team again in the season finale.

The Cougars (12-3-6, 6-3-4) enter the week clinging to a one-point lead over Turlock (7-7-3, 6-4-3) for the league’s third and final playoff spot. The schools will square off with one-win Atwater and Buhach Colony on Tuesday and then likely have everything come down to rivalry games against Merced and Pitman on Thursday.

“The way last year went down has been a huge motivating factor for us,” Lawry said. “(We) captains have quietly been telling everyone that we don’t want to feel again like we did last year. It’s not all we’ve focused on, but it certainly adds a little fuel to our fire.

“It’s pretty much the same scenario as last year. Even if we beat Pitman, we can’t let up. Golden Valley is going to be fighting for their playoff lives, so we have two very big games this week.”

Merced and Pitman settled for a 2-2 draw in their first meeting, and the Pride handed the Bears their only league loss in Turlock the second time around. Even with the loss, Merced held steady atop the league standings since the opening match. A 0-0 draw with Turlock last week changed all that.

“The good news is we can’t finish any worse than second, so we’re in the playoffs,” Merced coach Megan Atoigue said. “I think the girls are determined. It’s really going to come down to who wants it more. All four teams are really good. This whole conference season has been tough, so anything can happen.

“If we lose (Tuesday), we can’t win league, so we’re focused on that, and then we’ll take Thursday as it comes.”

Golden Valley is also happy to control its fate. Coach Lance Eber knows his squad had ample opportunity to have its place in the postseason already locked up. The Cougars dropped points in four games in which they led against the league’s other top three teams, leaving themselves in a less-than-secure position.

“We know if we don’t get in we have only ourselves to blame,” Eber said. “The good thing is last week’s win over Turlock puts us in the driver’s seat. We’ve done a good job of taking things one half at a time the last few weeks, and that’s going to stay our approach.

“Atwater has scored on us before and has some talented kids up front, so we won’t be looking past them. The good news Thursday is that Pitman and Turlock play earlier in the day, so by game time we’ll know if we’re just playing for pride or something more.”

This story was originally published May 2, 2016 at 6:10 PM with the headline "CCC soccer title, playoffs still up for grabs."