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East Union, Sierra to face WACs best
SOC--SJS 2nd round ADV file pic
Pedro Maciel (25) was assisted by Eddie Aguilar, right, on his second goal during Sierras 2-1 win over visiting Lindhurst in the first round of the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs. The Timberwolves head to Livingston today. - photo by File photo by WAYNE THALLANDER

East Union (12-3-2) and Sierra (16-8-2) are taking on the best of the Western Athletic Conference tonight when the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs resume. Both contests are scheduled to start at 6:30.

Top-seeded Weston Ranch (21-4-2), meanwhile, hosts River Valley (13-2-2) in the Division III quarterfinals. Kickoff was moved back to 7:15, as the Weston Ranch freshman football team will be playing beforehand.

Seeded sixth in Division III, East Union has already faced a WAC team in No. 11 Ceres and won 2-1 in the opening round Tuesday. The Lancers had previously downed Ceres more decisively 6-0 in a nonleague duel. No. 3 Patterson (13-3-3) split its league matches with Ceres and ended up in second place. The Tigers routed No. 13 Burbank 4-0 in their first-round contest. 

Led by goalie Carlos Moreno, Patterson’s stifling defense has given up just 17 goals in 19 matches and blanked WAC champion Livingston in a scoreless tie in their conference finale. The Tigers are used to playing on the FieldTurf at Patterson Community Stadium, but that could also favor East Union’s fast forwards spearheaded by Gerardo Romero, who scored his team-high 16th goal of the season on Tuesday.

Speaking of Livingston, the third-seeded Wolves (13-5-2) welcome No. 6 Sierra in Division IV. It’s a rematch of their Aug. 29 showdown in won by Livingston 1-0 in the Pitman Tournament. Livingston was one of three teams to have first-round byes in the bracket, the others being No. 1 Natomas and No. 2 Galt. 

Sierra coach Joe Pires is hopeful that his top defender, Jonathan Vargas (ankle), will be good to go. Sierra’s make-shift defense backed by the outstanding play of freshman keeper Saul Aguiniga fared well in a 2-1 win over Lindhurst on Tuesday. They’ll be tested tonight by the three-prong attack of Ricardo Garcia (13 goals, six assists), Chris Gonzalez (12 goals, eight assists) and Jose Gomez (eight goals, five assists). Sierra counters with Eddie Aguilar, whose 37 goals rank him fourth in the section. Pedro Maciel accounted for both of Sierra’s goals on Tuesday and has 16 for the season.

Weston Ranch the reigning Valley Oak League and SJS Division IV champion, will look to carry momentum from its wild 6-2 overtime victory over upset-minded No. 16 Bethel. Joseph Mayorca accounted for the Cougars’ first four goals, the second of which knotted the score in the final seconds of regulation. Weston Ranch rolled from there, outscoring the Jaguars of Vallejo 4-0 in the two extra periods. Mayorca is fourth in the section with 39 goals.

Battle-tested River Valley hasn’t lost in nearly two months. The No. 8 Falcons dropped its season opener 1-0 to Natomas before falling to powerhouse Rocklin 2-1 on Sept. 8. Natomas is the top-seeded team in Division IV, and Rocklin is No. 1 Division II. 

River Valley has since won the Tri-County Conference title and defeated No. 9 El Camino in its postseason opener. Yauri DeGroot is its top scorer with 22 goals and 10 assists, and he is complemented by Jose Zavala (eight goals, nine assists) and Angel Lopez-Ambrosio (13 goals) and Enrique Carvajal (nine assists).