The Stockton Cargo came into their Western Conference Finals appearance against Utah United having completed a dramatic comeback win in their previous game Friday night.  On Sunday evening at Saint Mary’s High’s Sanguinetti Field, drama was in full supply, but it was all the wrong kind for the Cargo and their fans, as Utah eliminated Stockton from the Women’s USL playoff by a score of 2-0.

Utah controlled possession early and throughout the first half culminating in a goal by United’s Kaylie Chambers in the 20^thminute. Utah continued their pressure by leveraging their massive size differential at most positions, increasing their physical play against the scrappy Cargo squad.

A huge call brought the storyline of the game into very sharp focus, as both Utah’s Seven Castain and a Cargo defender went down in the box in first- half stoppage time, with the referee calling for a penalty shot which the United striker converted. This provided a huge punctuation to Utah’s dominant play in the first half and a boiling point for Stockton’s fans, players and coaches, who all made their voices heard throughout the match.

Cargo Captain Hanna Diaz spoke up on behalf of her squad: “Credit to Utah. They got a win on the road…I’ve played all over the world, in some of the top leagues at the highest level. I have seen some gross officiating, there are bad officials everywhere, but I have never seen a game be completely swallowed by the decisions of a man with a whistle.”

Diaz says this has been an issue prior to tonight. “The officiating has actually been an ongoing conversation we have tried to have with the USL all season long. They require us to evaluate the referees, and actually fine us if we don’t. We found out following our match on Friday that those evaluations weren’t actually shared(specifically) with the referees all season.”

The second half is when things really got heated.

With the Cargo coming out with an increased offensive energy, Utah turned up the physical, which at times seemed to the Stockton crowd to come at the expense of fair play.  After a handball call was apparently missed, as well as another physical play in the box which left an attacking cargo player on the ground, Stockton coach Marek Albert finally had had enough.  He went directly to the linesman and shouted long enough and loud enough to earn a yellow, then red card. The Cargo now needed to turn up their play another notch.  They did.  

Catching up with Coach Albert after the game, he had plenty to say: “It has been a poor showing(by the referees) throughout the year. The fact that there is no oversight to people who can literally impact the outcome of a game is extremely saddening. How can you (move the game forward) when the referees that have been assigned to the games don’t respect women’s soccer , have never played the game themselves, or are too prideful to recognize that they are human and will make mistakes.  I hate it when refs put themselves in the middle, instead of remembering it’s about the players. 

Coach Albert also addressed the intense atmosphere towards the end of the contest as missed calls mounted and Stockton fans players passions rose: It is disgraceful. So much so, that they rushed off the field without shaking either team’s hands. (They) did not leave their room and until every person left the stadiumand asked for an escort to their car. That’s when you know you are bad.”

Lead by Stockton forwards Mika Sayfurhman and Vanessa Penuna, Stockton continued their second half efforts thanks to a midfield that was starting to gain more possession, emptying their gas tanks against the United’s bigger midfield players.  However, many of their efforts were thwarted by several key missed calls that benefitted the United.

A handball in the box that would have been a penalty shot was missed. After an open-armed shove in the box was missed, a member of the Cargo’s medical staff was also ejected.  This threw the home crowd into a loud frenzy. Fans players on the Cargo bench were fuming, but the Cargo played on, continuing to generate offense.

Coach Albert also addressed the intense atmosphere towards the end of the contest as missed calls mounted and Stockton fans and players passions rose: “It is disgraceful. So much so, that they rushed off the field without shaking either team’s hands. (They) did not leave their room and until every person left the stadium and asked for an escort to their car. That’s when you know you are bad.”

As the clock emptied, Utah goalkeeper Taylor Rath made several big saves to keep Utah ahead and the Cargo scoreless.  Rath made several saves from close range and from corner kick scrums. Rath’s clutch plays and some controversial calls/non-calls were more than the Cargo could overcome on this evening.   

Captain Diaz said it best: “I hope our final match does not take away from the unbelievable season those ladies had. They deserve all the good that is coming to them. In classic Cargo fashion, we fought until the end. I wouldn’t have wanted to share the field with anyone else.”

Story, Photos by Dan Rogers

The Stockton Cargo came into their Quarterfinal Playoff appearance against Utah United having completed a dramatic comeback win in their previous game Friday night.  On Sunday evening at Saint Mary’s High’s Sanguinetti Field, drama was in full supply, but it was all the wrong kind for the Cargo and their fans, as Utah eliminated Stockton from the Women’s USL playoff by a score of 2-0.

Utah controlled possession early and throughout the first half culminating in a goal by United’s Kaylie Chambers in the 20^thminute. Utah continued their pressure by leveraging their massive size differential at most positions, increasing their physical play against the scrappy Cargo squad.

A huge call brought the storyline of the game into very sharp focus, as both Utah’s Seven Castain and a Cargo defender went down in the box in first- half stoppage time, with the referee calling for a penalty shot which the United striker converted. This provided a huge punctuation to Utah’s dominant play in the first half and a boiling point for Stockton’s fans, players and coaches, who all made their voices heard throughout the match.

The second half is when things really got heated.

With the Cargo coming out with an increased offensive energy, Utah turned up the physical, which at times seemed the Stockton crowd seemed to come at the expense of the rules.  After a handball call was apparently missed, another physical play which left a cargo player on the ground, Stockton coach Marek Albert finally had had enough.  He went directly to the linesman and shouted long enough and loud enough to earn a yellow, then red card. The Cargo now needed to turn up their play another notch.  They did.  

Lead by Stockton forwards Mika Sayfurhman and Vanessa Penuna, Stockton continued their second half efforts thanks to a midfield that was starting to gain more possession, emptying their gas tanks against the United’s bigger midfield players.  However, many of their efforts were thwarted by several key missed calls that benefitted the United.

A handball in the box that would have been a penalty shot was missed. After an open-armed shove in the box was missed, a member of the Cargo’s medical staff was also ejected.  This threw the home crowd into a loud frenzy. Fans players on the Cargo bench were fuming, but the Cargo played on, continuing to generate offense.

As the clock emptied, Utah goalkeeper Taylor Rath made several big saves to keep Utah ahead and the Cargo scoreless.  Rath made several saves from close range and from corner kick scrums. Rath’s clutch plays and some controversial calls/non-calls were more than the Cargo could overcome on this evening.   

The Cargo’s season now ended, they can proud of what they have achieved, and what they have done for soccer in Stockton, and for the central valley. Their story has completed its first successful chapter, and Stockton looks to continue follow this inspirational story next season.

Story, Photos by Dan Rogers

The Stockton Ports provided a fireworks display after their game on Saturday night. Unfortunately for the Ports, their opponents, the Inland Empire 66ers also had some fireworks instore during the game, as they used a late flurry to overwhelm the Ports 14-6 at Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton.

The story of the game was the Ports pitchers, which by the end of the night included a position player, who issued 11 walks to go along with their 14 hits. This along with 3 errors in the field sealed the Ports fate on Saturday.

Spot-starter Blake Hammond, who showed flashes with 5 strikeouts in his 2.1 innings.  However, his second time through the 66ers lineup was rough, as Inland Empire broke through with two triples and a homer by Harold Coll. By the time Hammond exited the game. The Ports were trailing 5-1.  

Stockton chipped away in the 3^rd and 4^th, scoring 2 runs each inning, capped by Jared Sprague-Lott speeding home on a passed ball to make it 6-5 Ports in the 4^th. The Ports held that lead until the 6^th when 2 singles and an errant pickoff attempt allowed Inland Empire to regain a 7-6 lead.  Tucker Novotny was sharp until his misadventure in the 6^th, having struck out 4 batters early in his outing.

The score was a competitive 8-6 heading to the top of the 9^thwhen Andinson Ferrer entered the game for Stockton, and immediately finding himself in trouble with a series of singles and walks which piled up quickly, yielding 6 runs and put the game out of reach. Instead of bringing in another pitcher, Manager Javier Goddard chose to bring in DH Carlos Franco to mop up. Franco allowed a hit and a walk before getting Inland Empire centerfielder Edwin Espinal to ground out.

The Ports went quietly in the ninth, with Carlos Pacheco grounding into a double play after outfielder Luis Freitez had singled to start the final frame.

Stockton will close out its homestand and look to gain a split in its series against Inland Empire on Sunday.  First pitch is scheduled for 6:05PM.