'Fix' is in as Yuba City soccer tops River Valley

Charging toward the goal, Cassidy Fix assessed her options. This was the sophomore's best chance and she couldn't screw it up — not with the score tied, not against River Valley.

"This has to go in," she thought at full stride, "I can't over do it, I just have to tap it in."

Fifteen yards out, the Yuba City High forward went finesse: Left foot to back of net to 1-0 victory for the Honkers' girls soccer team at home on Tuesday. It was Fix's first goal of the season, and it carried more meaning than the basic "come-up-big-against-your-rival" storyline.

Sure, she said "it was great to beat them." She danced and hopped all over Honker Stadium's field turf once the final whistle blew, and talked about how she was looking forward to this game after all the hugs.

But when Fix took that seethe of a defense-splitting pass from Janelle Yahn in the 31st minute of the second half, also lingering about was how long it's been since she actually buried one. She became nervous as River Valley's goalie ran out to intercept her breakaway.

As a freshman, Fix exploded onto the pitch. Through four games she led the Honkers with six goals. Then came the knee-crashing collision with the goalie against Pioneer in game No. 5. Gone was the rest of her prep and summer competitive seasons, coach Joey Contreras said.

During conditioning, Fix had to work harder with specialized workouts: Leg curls and extra running. Even as of Tuesday, her coach said she's still not 100 percent. Still, she's close. And besides, all she needed was to tap.

"This better go in," she thought as the ball rolled toward the south goal.

Her coach knew it would.

"Once I saw the goalie come out, I knew that was it," Contreras said. "It's beautiful for her — a great feeling."

It also ended a frustrating 50 minutes for the Honkers (4-5-2, 2-1-1), who came close too many times before. At halftime, Contreras was talking about "not being able to buy a goal." Then the second half started with a Lexi Giusti shot banging off the crossbar.

"We haven't been able to put the ball in," Contreras said. "It's just one of those things."

Same goes for the Falcons, who mounted a brief offensive flurry at the end. After Fix's score, Contreras just wanted to fast forward to the end. With 12 minutes left, he asked the linesman how much time was left. Hearing that, he became concerned.

"It was getting very nervous," he said.

The Falcons (1-11-1, 0-5) put a hard shot on goal in the 39th minute and had a shot sail wide in the 40th minute. While "almost" isn't a stat, Falcons coach Manuel Serda Jr. will easily take the positive showing on defense. All but that "one let up," he said.

"Our girls are going to get confidence," Serda said.