BOYS’ SOCCER SIMI VALLEY TOURNAMENT : Simi Valley Tripped in Shootout, 2-1

Bakersfield West High lived on the edge throughout the first two days of play in the Simi Valley boys’ soccer tournament, picking up three of its four wins in penalty-kick shootouts.

So it was only appropriate that the Vikings (12-1) won Saturday night’s championship over Simi Valley, 2-1, in still another shootout.

After a first-half goal by West’s Juan Cruz in the 27th minute and a second-half score by Simi Valley’s Brian Lopez in the 55th minute, the teams battled through the rest of regulation and the 30 minutes of overtime on even terms to send the contest to a shootout.

Pioneer goalie Mike Jones, who stopped a pair of shots in a shootout win over Chaminade on Thursday, got his hands on two of West’s five shots in the championship decider, but both--from Mike Lynch and Charlie Lynch--went in. The Vikings also got shootout goals from Eric Fambrough and Brent Oxford to take a 4-3 lead.

Simi Valley (5-2-1) had successful penalty shots from Scott Silva, Greg Krier and Travis Nicholson, whose blast off the crossbar bounced in. But David Kennedy, who took the Pioneers’ second shot, sailed his effort wide to the right.

With his team in the lead, Cruz stepped up as West’s fifth shooter. He made sure he was the Vikings’ final one, drilling the clinching kick high into the right corner.

In other matches:

San Diego Mt. Carmel 2, Oxnard 1--The Sundevils (8-3-1) took a 2-0 lead with a goal in each half and held on to beat the Yellowjackets for third place.

Daniel Diaz scored the lone goal for Oxnard (4-3).

Capistrano Valley 3, San Fernando 2 (shootout)--The Tigers (12-2-1) tied the score, 2-2, in the second half on a penalty kick by Favian Galvan, but lost, 5-4, in a shootout for the consolation A championship.

San Fernando senior striker Hector Molina scored in the first half and set up Galvan’s tying goal when a Cougar defender fouled Molina in the penalty area.

In other consolation finals: Clovis West defeated Agoura, 2-1, in a shootout for the B title; Arroyo Grande hammered Harvard, 5-2, for the C title and San Marino beat Camarillo, 2-1, in a D shootout.