Co-Captain Ohadi leads team with hattrick

The Matadors came into league play with one mindset: Win. And that is what they did. The Matadors dominated their cross town rivals Cupertino High School 3-1 in their first league game at Monta Vista High School on January 8th.

The Matadors went into this game with a strong defense which has allowed only an average of 0.875 goals scored by opposing teams, and an explosive offense scoring 2.25 goals per game. The Pioneer defense allowed 2.5 goals per game and scores .75 goals per game.

The Matador offense was led by co-captain Brad Ohadi, who had five shots which resulted in three goals, one of which was shot from 40 yards out. The Matador defense kept the Pioneers out of the contest, with junior Anirudh Srinivas’ four saves and flawless defense by junior Greg Moe, senior Will Major and senior Eric Polgar, the Pioneers were silenced until the 83rd minute, in which the Pioneers used a trickshot on a free kick attempt.

There is still room for improvement as the Matadors took 14 shots total, scoring on only
three. Their players were consistently making plays but struggling to finish with their drives down field; they were also called offsides throughout the game. The cold weather did result in some cramps, which is one of the growing pains of playing a winter sport.

The Matadors were also set back by injuries to junior Eric Pala from an errant kick from a Pioneer, senior Vaish Menon who was dealing with a recurring ankle problem, and junior Varun Kalandoor who strained his calf. These players temporarily rested on the sideline and returned during the game.

The next home game will be on January 24 against Wilcox High School