BY LANDON NEGRI
BEAUMONT The competition gets tougher each year, but the Hemet girls soccer team keeps on rolling. The Bulldogs took a major step toward winning a fourth consecutive Mountain Pass League championship Tuesday by outlasting host Beaumont, 2-1. Senior forward Monserratt Cruz-Rodriguez headed in the go-ahead score in the 44th minute and the Hemet defense held Beaumont to just three shots on goal. “This is big,” Bulldogs coach Craig Dwinnell said. “We had a tough start to the season and lost a couple of games early that we should not have lost. “The girls worked hard in practice and we’ve gotten stronger as the season’s gone on. “I’m proud of the resolve they showed today.” Hemet (14-5-4, 7-0-2 league) holds a half-game lead over Hemet Tahquitz with one match to play — the Bulldogs host San Jacinto on Thursday while Tahquitz hosts Beaumont. Tuesday marked a crushing setback for the Cougars (15-5-4, 6-2-1). They were eliminated from league-title contention, and they lost senior forward and captain Stacy Mojica late in the match. Mojica took an inadvertent high kick to her face and fell to the pitch in the 65th minute. Play was stopped for about 20 minutes and she was transported by ambulance to the hospital with concussion-like symptoms and a possible broken nose. Before the injury, Beaumont had played even with Hemet in possession time but struggled to get past the Bulldogs’ back line. The Cougars’ only goal came in the 35th minute, when junior Cailey Avilla scored on a penalty kick against Hemet’s backup keeper — starter Valerie Masson had been yellow carded to set up the PK. Junior captain Nola Prickett gave the Bulldogs a lead when she scored a counterattack goal in the 17th minute off Krista Haddock’s assist. Cruz-Rodriguez chipped in her header early in the second half and nearly had another goal on a breakaway moments later. CONTACT THE WRITER: [email protected]