The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly is sponsored by Bryson Financial.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
Wilson got a huge win over rival Long Beach Poly on a chippy Monday night. The Bruins shut out the Jackrabbits in a 4-0 final score.
“It’s great to win and all, especially against Poly since we’ve always had a bitter rivalry with them,” Wilson goalkeeper Grayson Gilmore said. “It’s also great because we came off a last minute loss last year here…so being able to come back and prove what we have is definitely a good feeling.”
Wilson came out of the gate hungry, applying high pressure to Poly’s defense. This aggressiveness paid off when the ball found junior Manny Alonso inside the 18.
One on one with Poly’s keeper, Alonso had a strong finish to put the Bruins up 1-0 only three minutes into the game.
“I felt really good about it once I took that first touch forward, I saw the goalkeeper kind of backing up, and I knew, like he was a little scared,” Alonso said. “So, I took advantage of that, and I just shot.”
Wilson continued to press the Jackrabbits, keeping the ball in the home team’s half for the first 15 minutes of play. The Jackrabbits began to pose an offensive threat with 25 minutes left in the first half, but to no result.
With less than two minutes left in the first half, the Bruins added another goal to increase their lead. As Wilson built up their attack, Nery Colado connected with Casey Pettyjohn after Andres Martinez’s dummy gave Pettyjohn a simple finish.
That goal was one of the last plays of the half, putting the Bruins up 2-0 over their rivals.
The second half saw a bit more action, especially with aggressive play on both sides. While only one yellow card was issued in the first half, multiple cards were handed out in the second, including one to Wilson coaching staff for dissent.
Poly continued to attack toward Wilson’s goal, but their rhythm was interrupted every time either from a foul or a stop by Gilmore. The Bruins have yet to concede a goal in Moore League play.
“We just got to stay compact, and we just got to stay organized, and that’s what really helped us keep it zero goals,” Gilmore said.
In the 51’, Pettyjohn was driving toward goal again when he collided with Poly’s Felix Rivera. Pettyjohn was issued a yellow card on the play, but after the ref evaluated Rivera who was still on the floor, Pettyjohn was issued an immediate red.
In accordance with CIF rules regarding red cards, Pettyjohn was immediately removed from the game and will miss Wilson’s next contest, which will be on Wednesday when they host Compton. Wilson played down a man for the rest of the game.
These hard fouls continued, with discontent over calls coming from the stands and both teams. Even with rising tensions, the Bruins maintained their steady 2-0 lead for the majority of the second half.
“Luckily, we were up by the time we started having internal breakdowns with the ref and all, just as a team,” Gilmore said. “But just these moments, you just gotta stay calm and just stay focused on the game, and no matter if the ref is going to call a good call or not, you just stay focused and composed.”
Wilson didn’t plan on going scoreless in the second half. With three minutes left on the clock, Martinez scored a goal of his own to make the score 3-0. In the last play of the game, freshman Lio Rodriguez sealed the deal for the Bruins, scoring their fourth and final goal of the match.
“I think my team is really good, [and I’m] pretty sure we knew that coming into this game, we were going to win, and that’s what we did,” Alonso said.
Notably, Poly was without Head Coach Eric Leon and key player Roberto Bermudez. The Jackrabbits will host Millikan next Monday for a huge Moore League clash, with both of these pieces expected to be in place for Poly.
Wilson has a busy week of Moore League play. After they host Compton on Wednesday, they will host Jordan on Friday.
“Honestly, I feel like we might win the whole Moore League,” Alonso said. “Pretty sure, we’re all confident, especially in this game. We knew if we won this game, we’re going to win Moore League.”
