Clovis girls soccer team falls late

CLOVIS — The Clovis High girls soccer team spent plenty of time in the runup to Saturday’s first-round playoff game practicing penalty kicks, hoping it would somehow pay off for an upset over Eldorado.

The Eagles barely made sure Clovis didn’t get that chance.

Angel Vargas scored in the 99th minute during the second sudden-death overtime period, and the Eagles avoided the penalty kick round to take a 1-0 victory at the Albuquerque Public Schools Soccer Complex.

Eldorado (14-6) moves on to a 2 p.m Wednesday quarterfinal at the Bernalillo Soccer Complex. Clovis finishes its season at 14-5-1.

Vargas netted the game-winner with a shot that went top-corner against sophomore keeper Hanna Nussbaumer, who made eight saves in the second half.

“It was the only possible place it could have been,” Clovis coach Traci Sievers said of the goal.

Senior Hannah Howell had five saves in a scoreless first half.

Clovis didn’t register any shots on goal, but had several go just wide or off the crossbar.

“If it goes to PKs, you never know,” Sievers said. “You’ve got nerves, and it was really windy. We’d practiced PKs a lot this week knowing we’d have a chance. I think the things we needed to practice, we practiced. And we were a minute from getting to that point.”

It was a season of highs and lows for Clovis, which started the season 8-0, and lost a tiebreaker to Hobbs for the District 4-5A title. The 2019 Wildcats should be an experienced team, with only five seniors set to leave from the current squad.

“It’s good experience for us,” Sievers said. “We always talk about opportunities because you never know you’re going to have them. I think our girls believe they had a chance to beat anybody in the state. You look at the top 12 on any given day, anybody could beat anybody.”