Le Grand High boys soccer falls short of third consecutive section championship

The Le Grand High boys soccer team’s bid for a third title as Sac-Joaquin Section champions fell short against a talented Encina Prep team.

Senior Moshi Wilondja recorded a hat trick as Encina defeated Le Grand 4-1 in a wide-open, fast-paced Division VI championship game Saturday at Liberty Ranch High School in Galt.

“Their two guys up front were as good as we’ve seen this year,” said Le Grand coach Jeff Slaughter, whose team dropped to 13-4-3 overall. “As far as their speed and their ball control, they were as good as we’ve seen.”

Le Grand, which plays on natural grass, didn’t have time to adjust to the speed of the field turf because the game was up and down the field from the start.

Both teams had scoring opportunities throughout the match.

“I feel the speed of the game was quick,” said Le Grand junior Hector Tejada, who scored Le Grand’s lone goal. “We’re not used to playing on a turf field. We were disconnected. Sometimes that’s just the way it is with soccer.”

Wilondja gave No. 1 seed Encina (20-3-1) a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute with his 26th goal of the season as he booted a shot into the right corner of the net with his left foot.

Le Grand couldn’t capitalize on any of its scoring opportunities in the first half, either shooting off target or Encina goalie Davel Perry making a nice save.

“It was a great game,” Slaughter said. “We got after it. We’re in shape. We pride ourselves on that. We gave them everything we had. They beat us. We just missed shots we don’t usually miss.”

During halftime Slaughter implored his team to keep shooting.

“Don’t try to set up the perfect shot,” he said. “We need shots and we need more shots.”

Wilondja gave Encina a 2-0 lead with a goal in the 44th minute. The Encina senior hooked the ball from the left side and found the far right corner of the net.

Le Grand didn’t fold.

Tejada followed up a rebound and deposited the ball in the back of the net to pull Le Grand within 2-1 in the 54th minute.

“It felt good; it felt we were back in it,” Tejada said.

The feeling did not last long as Wilondja headed a ball that was stopped by Le Grand goalie Carlos Jaramillo, but Wilondja chased down the rebound and scored to extend the lead to 3-1 in the 56th minute.

Encina’s Iven Flores tacked on a fourth goal on a penalty kick late in the game and was soon celebrating the section championship with his teammates.

This story was originally published February 22, 2020 at 3:23 PM.