Adam Updegrove was the smallest player on the field Wednesday night, but he may have had the biggest impact on the game.
Updegrove has a ton of speed, and plenty of skill to go along with it. He used a little of both to lead Carson to a 2-1 win over arch-rival Douglas in a Sierra League soccer match at Carson.
The win kept the Senators unbeaten as the first half ended. The Senators are currently 6-0-1, and the Tigers fell to 5-2.
"It felt good," Updegrove said after the game. "It always feels good when we beat Douglas."
Updegrove had a hand in both of Carson's goals, both of which came in the first 28 minutes of the match.
In the 16th minute, Carson goalie Brandon Briggs, with the help of a strong wind, boomed one downfield. Updegrove and Douglas' Jose Alcaraz went up for the ball, and the referee ruled that Alcaraz went over the top of the diminutive Updegrove in the penalty box, and ruled a penalty kick.
Up stepped Good. As he approached the ball, Douglas goalie Ivan Gonzales went to his left, and Good put one in the back left corner to give the Senators a 1-0 lead.
"I wanted to step up and put the first one away," Good said. "They (goalies) guess, so I just try to put one in the corner. You make a decision (where you are going with it) and you stay with it."
Updegrove and Good combined on the Senators' second goal in the 28th minute.
Good played a through ball, and Updegrove got behind a Douglas defender and chipped a shot over Gonzales for a 2-0 lead. It was his 10th goal of the season.
Douglas coach Milko Vasquez blamed defensive breakdowns on both goals. He said that on the first goal, Eddie Vega pushed too hard (on offense) which left Alcaraz alone in the back.
"He (Updegrove) is non-stationary," Vasquez said. "He is all over the place. It's easy to defend (him) if you communicate. We pressed so much we left people open."
Carson had the advantage of playing with the brisk wind in the first half which led to a 5-2 edge in shots.
The Tigers' best opportunity in the first half came when Edgar Arceo tried to score on the short side against Briggs, but was turned away.
"After we scored the second goal, we got a little nonchalant," Good said.
"Our attack let us down," Koop said. "We got out of our game plan."
The Tigers, going with the wind in the second half, cut the deficit in half in the 49th minute on Jeff Crozier's goal.
Carson was called for a foul, and Vega lofted a free kick toward the crowded goal area. Briggs leaped up to grab the ball, but apparently collided with a Douglas defender and lost control. Crozier tapped in the rebound.
The final 31 minutes were scoreless, as neither team showed a lot of offense. Goals were at a premium last night, but physical contact wasn't. This was one physical game, one where a few more yellow cards probably should have been served, and even a red card or two could have been handed out.
"It was a typical Carson-Douglas game," Vasquez said. "It wasn't very pretty."
