Prep Report: Seahawks blank Estero 2-0
Many of the Cape Coral Seahawks’ great shots on Estero goalkeeper Jorge Herrera Tuesday night ended with a similar result.
The ones Herrera wasn’t able to get in good position to block, he dove just in the nick of time and kept the ball out of the net.
Eventually, it was the Seahawks’ persistence that paid off in a 2-0 win over the Wildcats at Dave Warkentin Field.
A prime example came with 20 minutes left in the second half when Cape sophomore Caio Amaral was denied on his first attempt, but stuck with the play and chipped the ball over Herrera’s head for an important insurance goal.
Amaral received the initial pass from Oliver Benedict, and after Herrera blocked the first shot, Amaral used his left foot to get it past.
“That was beautiful individual work, he’s been doing it all year,” said Cape coach David Torres. “The key for him was staying with it. That keeper was great today. He blocked three or four sure goals.”
Herrera ended the match with 15 saves. The Seahawks (7-1, 3-1 District 4A-11) outshot the Wildcats 11-0 in the first half and continued to produce the majority of scoring chances in the final 40 minutes.
Freshman John Ramirez gave the Seahawks a 1-0 lead with two minutes left in the first half, scoring off a feed from senior Guillermo Duque.
Neither team put together a legitimate scoring chance in the first 20 minutes of the match, but the Seahawks controlled possession in their offensive zone.
Benedict and junior Alex Russell played strong defense just beyond midfield, which prevented the Wildcats from extending their attack.
With approximately 15 minutes left in the first half, the Seahawks brought in substitutions and the offense got a lift.
Sophomore Kayek Freire provided a spark on the left wing, registering two shots from close range.
“The guys that were on the bench I guess were hungry,” Torres said. “That’s usually how it is. They wanted to be on the field and were ready when they got the chance.”
After several other quality shots, the Seahawks had a golden opportunity with five minutes left in the first half when senior Fabian Fajardo was awarded a penalty kick after being pushed from behind inside the 18-yard box.
Fajardo’s penalty shot was stopped by Herrera, but the Seahawks came back three minutes later with the first goal. Travis Pacheco started the play with a long pass from midfield to Duque, who slid it to Ramirez breaking in on Herrera.
Cape goalkeeper Santi Villamil tallied three saves and his sixth shutout of the season.
Dunbar 2, Island Coast 1: Juan Chica scored in the closing minutes to bring Island Coast within a goal in a loss to Dunbar.
Goalkeeper John Simpson made 12 saves for the Gators (0-6-1), who play at Bishop Verot Thursday.
Oasis 4, SWF Christian 2: Oscar Trujillo buried three goals and Joey Giammarusto added one to lead Oasis to victory over Southwest Florida Christian. Gators goalkeeper Alex Trujillo was credited with 26 saves while Collin Cole and Oliver Mickeut had one assist apiece.
The Gators (2-2-1) play Wednesday at Naples Seacrest.
Ida Baker 3, North Fort Myers 3: After defeating rival Mariner for the first time in school history Monday, host Ida Baker played North Fort Myers to a tie.
Yuri Bykau scored on an assist from Harvey Rincon, and Daniel Sharkey and Brandon Stevens added one goal apiece.
The Bulldogs (5-2-2) play at Riverdale Monday.
Girls Soccer
Mariner 1, Riverdale 1: Mariner’s Rebecca Smith scored in the first half off an assist from Kelsea Whitaker, a goal that stood up until Riverdale scored midway through the second half to settle for a tie.
Goalkeeper Jessica Parks recorded 16 saves for Mariner (5-4-2), which hosts Charlotte Thursday night.
Estero 2, Cape Coral 1: Cape’s Emily Daniels scored with 10 minutes left, tying the game, but Estero edged the Seahawks in a hard-fought contest.
The Wildcats scored the go-ahead goal with four minutes remaining.
Amanda Kopale made 10 saves for the Seahawks (5-2-2), who play at Port Charlotte Wednesday.
Dunbar 4, Island Coast 2: Janelle Keary scored both goals for Island Coast in a loss at Dunbar. Keeper Merlin Alvarez made 11 saves.
The Gators (0-6) led 1-0 at halftime, but were unable to hang on for their first victory. They play at Bishop Verot Thursday.
Girls Basketball
Mariner 35, Riverdale 28: Megan Heroux’s field goal in the final seconds sent the game into overtime and Mariner went on to post its first victory of the season at Riverdale.
The Tritons outscored the Raiders 7-0 in overtime with Ashley Mercado providing most of the points and finishing with 11. Mariella Bono pitched in with six points.
The Tritons (1-5) host Estero Friday night.
North Fort Myers 58, Ida Baker 32: North Fort Myers brought the defensive pressure from the opening tip. They created 16 first-half turnovers and cruised to victory over Ida Baker.
Susie McKeever led North with 14 points. Cheyanne Ross led Baker (2-4) with 13.
Ida Baker 11 5 12 4 – 32
North FM 26 8 15 9 – 58
Ida Baker (32) – Sanchez 2, Dougherty 3, Emmons 2, Del Negro 2, Brown 3, West 7, Ross 13. Totals: 13 7-11 32.
3-point goals: Brown 1.
North FM (58) – Santiago 3, McKeever 14, Edwards 3, Rosario 12, Calhoun 11, Dwyer-Williams 2, C.Ruiz-Lopez 4, Scott 3, Wagner 2, S.Ruiz-Lopez 4. Totals: 14 15-24 58.
3-point goals: McKeever 2, Calhoun 1, C.Ruiz-Lopez 1.
Estero 56, Cape Coral 55: Jomaris Vaquez scored 26 points, Kassie Griffin added 17, but the visiting Seahawks fell one point short at Estero. The Seahawks (1-1) visit Lemon Bay Friday.
Boys Basketball
Ida Baker 60, North Fort Myers 44: Ida Baker opened an early lead, then pulled away in the second half to defeat North Fort Myers.
The Bulldogs were led by Christian Davis with a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds. Rob Serrano chipped in with 13 points while Al Serrano handed out six assists.
Baker (2-2) plays at South Fort Myers Friday.
North Ft. Myers 12 17 10 5 – 44
Ida Baker 20 12 15 13 – 60
North (44) – Lapaugh 4, Rosario 5, Guerrero 4, Mereado 22, Mena 2, Jackimowicz 1, Ramirez 6. Totals: 17 8-12 44.
3-point goals: Mereado 2.
Baker (60) – R. Serrano 13, A. Serrano 6, Manego 9, Davis 19, Dobbins 2, Pascale 4, Tufano 4, Deems 3. Totals: 23 9-15 60.
3-point goals: R. Serrano 1, Manego 1, Davis 3.
Cape Coral 65, Estero 50: The host Seahawks played their first game after getting several players back from football, and grinded out a tough win over Estero.
Joel Hill led the charge with 18 points and David Flynn chipped in with 13.
The Seahawks (2-1) host Lemon Bay Friday.
Estero 11 12 13 14 – 50
Cape Coral 16 14 19 16 – 65
Estero (50) – Fra 4, Bird 7, Walsh 4, Pruitt 5, Murphy 4, Kemry 3, Kincade 23. Totals: 19 9-18 50.
3-point goals: Fra 1, Murphy 1, Kemry 1.
Cape Coral (65) – Henry 5, Mitchell 8, Flynn 13, Carter 2, McIntyre 4, Hill 18, Morales 1, Adams 8, Figueroa 4, Caprice 2. Totals: 24 14-23 65.
3-point goals: Henry 1, Flynn 1, Hill 1.
Bishop Verot 78, Lely 56: Bobby Thomas scored 23 points and freshman Quinten Payne added 22 points, five rebounds and five assists, leading the host Vikings past Lely.
Abner Sandoval tallied 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Vikings (1-1), who host Island Coast Thursday.
Lely 13 17 14 12 – 56
Bishop Verot 17 22 15 24 – 79
Lely (56) – Mendel 6, Newbold 4, Wilkie 4, Lane 2, Tateo 3, Helmick 9, Hornsby 12, Gao 12, Medina 4. Totals: 19 12-21 56.
3-point goals: Mendel 2, Newbold 1, Tateo 1, Gao 1, Medina 1.
Verot (79) – Wagner 5, Payne 22, Reeves 2, Thomas 23, Hagan 11, Sandoval 13, Nate Howard 2. Totals: 29 13-19 79.
3-point goals: Thomas 4, Wagner 1, Payne 1, Hagan 1.
Dunbar 67, Island Coast 58: The Gators had a late run fall short in a loss to Dunbar.
Jordan Hrkach and Dave Perez led the way with double-doubles. Hrkach pitched in 17 points to go with 11 rebounds while Perez added 15 points and 12 rebounds. Kyle Harding contributed 14 points.
The Gators (0-5) play at Bishop Verot Thursday.
Dunbar 18 23 13 13 – 67
Island Coast 10 10 19 19 – 58
Dunbar (67) – Simmons 11, Paulk 9, German 20, Brice 4, Strawbridge 1, Kinchen 2, Jackson 2, White 18.
Island Coast (58) – Hrkach 17, Harding 14, Orellana 2, Perez 15, Morris 4, Hopkins 1, Griffin 3, Rees 2.
Mariner (55) – Beach 20, Barsesa 7, Marrero 16, Guerrier 4, Emmons 6, Johnson 2. 3-point goals: Beach 4, Marrero 3, Barsesa 2. Totals: 17 12-20 55.
Mariner 55, Riverdale 44: Senior Kameron Beach sank four three-pointers and finished with a game-high 20 points, leading Mariner over Riverdale.
The Tritons (5-0) are off to their best start since 2003.
They hit nine three-pointers overall. Nick Marrero added 16 points and Justin Emmons grabbed 12 rebounds.
The Tritons play at Estero Friday.
Riverdale 13 10 11 10 – 44
Mariner 19 14 12 10 – 55
Riverdale (44) – Hagan 19, Sherod 10, Miller 3, Johnston 7, Edwards 5. Totals: 16 7-12 44.
3-point goals: Hagan 1, Miller 1, Johnson 1.
Mariner (55) – Beach 20, Barsesa 7, Marrero 16, Guerrier 4, Emmons 6, Johnson 2. Totals: 17 12-20 55.
3-point goals: Beach 4, Marrero 3, Barsesa 2.