Paloma Valley girls soccer team wins school's first CIF title

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Members of the Paloma Valley High School girls soccer team celebrate the CIF Division 4 championship. Photo by Kristi Jo Aguirre

It was an historic victory in more ways than one.

Paloma Valley High School's 1-0 win over Ventura High Saturday not only gave the Wildcats the CIF Southern Section Division 4 championship in girls soccer -- it gave the school its first CIF team title in school history.

"It couldn't have happened to a better group of amazing women," Paloma Valley principal Jennifer Thomasian told the players during the post-game celebration at Corona High School. "Girl power!"

It definitely was a powerful performance by the Wildcats, who completed an unbeaten season (24-0-3) with their 14th consecutive shutout. Combining good defensive clearing passes with timely goalkeeping and offensive movement, the Wildcats put themselves into position for the victory when freshman Correyn Barackman punched in the second rebound from a crowd at the left corner of the goal area in the 57th minute.

That's all Paloma Valley needed to become the first CIF team champion in 23 years of Wildcats sports.

"It popped out at the corner and I just touched it in," said Barackman (celebrating the goal at left with teammate Alyssa Moore). "This is great. I've been waiting like forever to do this."

The Wildcats have a roster full of talented players. Forwards Nicole Dallin and Alyssa Moore worked in tandem to move the ball forward against a tough Ventura defense. Miale Jones, Megan Dallin, Payton Whitcomb and Graci Raymond controlled play in the midfield. And when starting goalkeeper Peyton Broccardo-Rehak left with an injury nine minutes into the second half, Paulina Pimentel took the field and artfully completed the shutout.

Over the course of the season, the two goalkeepers played a similar amount of minutes and combined for a 0.44 goals-against average.

"She said, 'If I can't give 100 percent, I'm coming out," coach Carlos Alfaro said about Broccardo-Rehak, who was limping a bit after being kicked in the leg. "Paulina did a great job, too. I've been playing Peyton more in the playoffs, but Paulina being a junior, I told her, 'Next year this is your team.'"

And as Barackman showed by emerging from a tangle of players with the lone goal, the talent extends even to the freshman ranks. In fact, Paloma Valley loses only three seniors off this team.

"Correyn has a knack of scoring goals like that," said Alfaro about Barackman, who scored seven goals this season. "She always cleans up the mess. I'd say more than half her goals have been like that, where she cleans up the mess, or balls nobody else gets, she goes after."

About four minutes into the second half, Broccaro-Rehak cleared a rebound after a shot had bounced off the crossbar. Five minutes later, the Wildcats were pressuring the Ventura goal and Cougars goalkeeper Kambria Haughton came up with two big saves. And in the 67th minute, Pimentel made a diving save at the end of a flurry of Ventura shots.

In the end, the Wildcats' relentless pressure and game experience paid off again in a close game.

"Our games have been like this," Alfaro said. "They (Ventura) were tough, but our girls stepped up like they have been, especially in the second half."

Paloma Valley's Miale Jones battles Ventura's Tiffany Hernandez for the ball during Saturday's game. Photo by Kristi Jo Aguirre

Correyn Barackman of the Wildcats moves the ball past a Ventura opponent. Photo by Kristi Jo Aguirre

It's a study in contrasts as Paloma Valley players celebrate Correyn Barackman's goal while Ventura players appear stunned. Photo by Doug Spoon

Paloma Valley's Alyssa Moore moves through the Ventura defense in the first half of Saturday's game. Photo by Doug Spoon

Alexys Ladue controls the ball to help clear the zone for the Paloma Valley defense. Photo by Doug Spoon