FRESNO COUNTY – The whistle has officially blown on another soccer season for varsity girls teams throughout the Central Section. And for the Sanger Apaches, a possible return to the top of a crowded County/Metro Athletic 1 seems likely to happen.
Sanger (19-2-4 / 5-0-1) fended off Bullard (11-9-2 / 3-2-1) once again in what wound up becoming a two horse race. And with Madera South moving to CMAC 2 this season, that leaves only the Knights and Justin Garza competing with the Apaches in the County/Metro 1 this season.
Last season, the Apaches claimed their fourth consecutive CMAC title with an offense that averaged 3.7 goals per match and 10.6 points per match. In the end, Sanger rode their conference title to a berth in the Central Section Division 1 Playoffs, eventually falling to Highland (Bakersfield) in a tight 1-0 match.
Fortunately, with the core group of players returning from last season’s roster, the Apaches shouldn’t skip a beat on the pitch. While the roster on MaxPreps shows only three seniors on this season’s squad, a talented group of sophomores and juniors that played key roles at their positions are now more experienced.
Senior striker Royce Kilby is one of these players who could help keep Sanger at the top of conference superiority. Kilby produced 14 goals and 36 points for the Apaches; and her continued development will be important down the stretch. Kilby and fellow striker, junior Kaylynn Foltz (12 goals, 37 points, 13 assists), give Sanger a potent one-two punch on the pitch.
Defensively, senior Zoe Ramirez and junior Brianna Murillo have the most experience of a young group of defenders consisting of Izabella Acosta, Ayvah Avalos and Jasmine Munoz. In the goal, it appears that sophomore Jaylynn Ruiz gets the first crack at replacing Corynn Bravo’s 0.526 goals against average and 59 saves. Junior Audrey Pinedo and freshman Isabella Moreno are also options to rotate in and out of the box with Ruiz.
Last season, Bullard averaged a whopping 178 shots on goal, with a 8.1 SOG per match. And while the Knights lost two of their top threats, Syrrai Hurd and Julia Salem, a deep roster consisting of juniors and seniors returned to keep close with the Apaches.
Junior Paytin Guyton, who ranked third on the Knights in goals (7) and shots (56) returns with fellow junior Korra Rambungo to keep the offense alive for the Knights.
Justin Garza came within one match of playing for the Central Section D-II Championship last season. However, a 2-0 loss to St. Joseph (Santa Maria), ended their shot at playing for title redemption. If the Guardians can build off last season’s playoff run, they could also contend for a conference title.
The Apaches will kick off conference play on Jan, 8, by hosting Torres (Madera).
