Figueroa pushes Merced soccer into DII semifinals

It was a tough spot for Napa High’s Alexis Alcantara to be in.

The backup goalkeeper entered the game after starter Ricardo Medina suffered a broken arm on a collision just seven minutes into Thursday’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division II quarterfinal. The first action Alcantara saw proved to be the game’s decisive moment.

He fearlessly charged off of his line to intercept a long throw-in from Merced’s Jose Alvarado. Alcantara got to the ball first, but couldn’t hold it.

Eric Figueroa was the first to react, toeing what proved to be the game’s only goal into the net in the 20th minute. Merced held from there, reaching the semifinals for the third straight season with a 1-0 victory over the Indians.

No. 6 Merced (20-4-3) will travel to No. 2 Cosumnes Oaks, which beat Lodi 2-1 in its quarterfinal, next Wednesday.

“Honestly, I was surprised it went in,” said Figueroa, who also had two assists in the Bears’ first-round win. “The keeper just dropped the ball and I shot as fast as I could.

“It was nice to get the fast start, but I thought we’d be able to tack on a couple more. They definitely didn’t make it easy for us. It’s good to get back to the semis, but we need to reach the title game.”

Napa (10-6-5) conceded the midfield to Merced’s vaunted passing game. The Indians routinely fired balls over the top of the Bear defense as soon as they won possession.

It wasn’t the most effective tactic in the first half as Napa was outshot 4-1. The Indians’ front line found a little more space in the second half, as Dominic Debenedetti put a scare into the Bears just two minutes after the break.

The speedy striker was left open in transition and allowed to chase down a long ball near the top right of Merced’s 18-yard box. He fired a blast that beat goalkeeper Saad Sohail, but clanged off the far post and back into play.

“That was a definite wake-up call for me,” Sohail said. “I knew my defense and me were going to have to step up in the second half. They were a big team, and we just had to absorb their pressure when it came.”

Merced picked its play up after the near miss, but couldn’t produce much to bother Alcantara despite sustained possession.

The same held true for Napa. The Indians began throwing bodies forward while desperately searching for the equalizer, but could only force Sohail into making one save after the break.

The Bears now turn their attention to reaching that elusive title game for the first time since winning it all in 2008. Merced has exited in the Division I semifinals the last two seasons with losses to Jesuit.

“You look at some of Napa’s scores and they’ve played some very good teams tough,” Merced coach Bart McAfee said. “They’re a good team. It was no surprise they stayed in the game with us until the end.

“We played well, though. They were a big, physical team, but I thought we stayed composed and played well enough to win.

“This time of year it doesn’t matter how you get them, the W is all the matters.”

This story was originally published November 6, 2014 at 8:59 PM with the headline "Figueroa pushes Merced soccer into DII semifinals."