Bastrop loses to Anderson on corner kick but advances to playoffs

Caden Justice (left) is one of several Bastrop players competing with injuries

By Jim Irish

Photos by Dustyn Werner

The Bastrop boys soccer team is advancing to the state playoffs for the second consecutive year under coach Greg Vuagniaux.

The only remaining issue is whether the Bears (13-4-4 overall, 5-3-3 in District 24-5A) will finish in third or four place in the district.

Bastrop's final game of district is on the road against McCallum at Nelson Field at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday. The Bears and the Knights have identical records in district at 5-3-3. The first district encounter ended in a 1-1 draw.

In bi-district, the Bears will likely face Pflugerville Connally, currently in third place in District 24 with a 5-3-3 mark), Vuagniaux said.

On Friday, Bastrop dropped a competitive match against Anderson 1-0 at home. The Trojans, currently tied for first in district with LASA at 8-1-2, crushed the Bears 6-0 in the first district encounter on February 10.

Anderson scored the match's only goal in the 20th minute of the first half on a header by Trevor Rener following a corner kick by Reymundo Rodriguez.

"Some athletes have a way of getting to their spots," Vuagniaux said about Rener, last year's MVP in the district.

Bastrop center back Andres Carbajal (leaping) did not play against Anderson because of concussion protocol

In the contest, Anderson had six corner kicks, which always pose a dangerous element for the defense. Bastrop had only one corner kick.

"They had more threatening possessions. We had some issues tracking (them). That had a lot to do with athleticism."

-- Bastrop coach Greg Vuagniaux about Anderson

Rener, a senior wing, and Dax Popelka, a junior striker, taxed Bastrop's back line with their speed and adept ball control.

"They had more threatening possessions," Vuagniaux said. "We had some issues tracking (them). That had a lot to do with their athleticism."

Rener received a yellow card in the second half after complaining to the center referee.

Gavin Meraz, Bastrop's freshman goalkeeper, leapt high and tipped it over the crossbar, preventing a score in the 34th minute. Forty second later, he punched out a ball on a corner kick.

Leo Aldaco and Tony Palacios had scoring opportunities in the frantic first half but came up empty handed.

Bastrop striker Cayden Justice, the leading scorer with 13 goals, played a limited amoun of minutes because of a right quadricep injury he suffered in a 1-1 tie with LASA the previous Friday.

"He's a senior and wants to play," Vuagniaux said about Justice. "You can obviously tell he's hurting. He runs at full speed, (but) it's painful for him to stop."

Isaac Velasquez, a sophomore midfielder, played with a knee injury from the LASA contest.

"We were beat up after LASA," Vuagniaux said. "We played with a lot of fire. A lot of guys got banged up.

Andres Carbajal, the starting center back, missed the game under concussion protocol, Vuagniaux said. In recent games, Carbajal has been struck in the face and collided with another player on a header.

Vuagniaux said he would not play Carbajal in the McCallum game and hope for a complete recovery in time for the playoffs.

Jim Irish is a freelance writer in Bastrop, Texas