Coyotes overwhelmed in conference loss to Bullard
Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune
Madera’s Brooke Gill works the ball up the field against Bullard in a Jan. 10 loss in Memorial Stadium.
In a match marred by constant rain, the Bullard-Fresno Knights ran past the Madera Coyote girls soccer team 6-0 in Memorial Stadium.
“It was kind of individual errors happened and the midfield balance was off,” head coach Cameron Hill said. “Whenever people score that many they wanna blame the defense but it happens before it gets there usually. The midfield just wasn’t right today.”
The Coyotes showed a brief spark early in the first half when Mia Alvarez raced down the left wing. Alvarez fired in the second minute from just inside the penalty area but was stopped short when the opposing goalkeeper scooped up the low shot.
The Knights pulled away in the ninth minute scoring on Coyotes’ goalkeeper Jessica Diaz to take a 1-0 lead.
Diaz later came up with an important block after she stood her ground in the heavy rain to deny the Knights forward.
The Coyotes had a chance off a 20-yard free kick in the 15th minute. Alvarez stepped up and fired high over the crossbar for an opposing goal kick.
“We played in a rain game already so we kinda knew,” Hill said. “We’re used to the turf so it kinda skids anyway. We trained in the rain on Saturday so we were ready for it.”
The Knights took a 2-0 lead in the 23rd minute when the Coyotes are caught out of position. The Knights executed a quick counterattack, which doubled the lead. The Knights moved the ball quickly while the Coyotes were late hurrying back.
The wet surface seemed to help the Knights attacking play in the first half. The ball skipped off the surface, which aided their counter.
The Knights continued their scoring in the second half when Diza was unable to block a shot in her own penalty area.
The Coyotes had few chances going forward in the second half. Their best chance coming from Alvarez’s free kick from 20 yards out. The shot is fired into the goalkeeper’s chest and deflected into the path of a Coyotes attacker. The shot misses the post at point blank range and out for a goal kick.
Mia Perez had a chance in the 23rd minute as she dribbled the ball just outside the opponent’s penalty area. Perez picked her head up and fired for the left post but missed wide.
The Knights added four more goals in the second half for the conference victory.
