On the evening of Nov. 18, 2024, the Foothill Technology (Foothill Tech) boys soccer team kicked their season off with a matchup against Fillmore High School (Fillmore) on Fillmore’s home turf. After 90 minutes of play, Fillmore bested Foothill Tech by a score of 1-5.
Connor Bursek ‘25 spoke on his expectations coming into the match, stating, “We tied them both times we played them last year so … I was expecting a hard fought match.”
Fillmore certainly lived up to Bursek’s expectations as they came out aggressively on offense and were awarded a penalty kick after a slip up in Foothill Tech’s defense. This penalty kick allowed Fillmore to take the early lead, 0-1.
Fillmore continued to press their early advantage by building their lead to 0-4 towards the end of the first half. Foothill Tech attempted to respond as they made multiple attempts on Fillmore’s goal, but were ultimately unable to make a successful play that resulted in the ball finding the back of the net.
“One big mistake was our defense dribbling in the backfield and losing possession of the ball which ended up resulting in at least two goals,” Bursek said in reflection.
Foothill Tech made it on the board after a as a pass intended for Fillmore’s goalie slipped by and ended up in the back of Fillmore’s net, resulting in the scoreboard reading 1-4 at the end of the first half.
The second half was much of the same for Foothill Tech’s offense, with drives put down by Fillmore’s defense and attempts on goal not finding the net.
Defensively, Foothill Tech improved relatively from their performance in the first half with multiple crucial clearances and stopped attacks. Despite this, Fillmore still scored another goal to bring the end score to 1-5.
Ronan Murphy ‘25 spoke on improvements that can be made, explaining, “We need to focus on working as one team across the field, creating options and fast build ups.”
Foothill Tech’s next match is at home against Santa Clara High School on Nov. 25, 2024, where they hope to bounce back from this early season loss.
