Rancho out to make big breakthrough

Rancho's seniors were in fifth grade the last time the school's girls soccer team won a first-round playoff game.

The Rams are hoping this is the year they finally get over the hump.

Rancho (11-2-2) is the top seed from the Northeast Division in the Sunrise Region playoffs, which begin today at Bettye Wilson Park. The Rams, who won the division for the second time in five years, face Basic, the No. 4 seed from the Southeast, at 6 p.m.

"We've always wanted to get past that first round," senior goalie Yvette Cordero said.

If nothing else, the Rams will face a different opponent after being eliminated by Coronado each of the last three years.

"To lose to the same team three years in a row is rough," senior Saige Diller said. "We have so much going for us this year. We feel like we can finally get past the first round of the playoffs."

What the Rams have going for them is a strong offense and defense, solid play from Cordero and good team chemistry.

"This is the best team we've had athlete-wise," Diller said. "This is the best group of girls Rancho has had and may have for a while. Everybody's attitudes are good. We get along really well."

Rancho lost 1-0 to Cimarron-Memorial in the season opener, then went 12 matches without a loss, a streak that was snapped in the next-to-last game of the season, a 3-2 defeat to Las Vegas.

"That was definitely a reality check," first-year coach Sarah France said. "It's better to lose then. Until that point, the girls thought they were unbeatable."

Before that loss, the Rams posted five consecutive shutouts. Rancho allowed just 11 goals in the regular season, seven of those in the first seven matches.

"The reason we've been so good is our defense," Diller said. "(Yvette) is a really good goalkeeper. We've just gotten better with her in goal."

Rancho's offense has been potent, averaging more than three goals per match, and the wealth has been shared.

Sophomores Jahmela Muhammad, Katie Greener and Lexa Green are among the leaders on offense.

"We're like sisters," Cordero said. "Everybody just connects. We have good athletes, but there's no real stars on our team. We just have a good team."

The Rams have won only one playoff game -- a 1-0 victory over Chaparral in 2001 -- in their last eight trips to the postseason.

"This is our last chance and we've finally got the good group of girls to do it, but we know we have to take it one game at a time," Diller said. "We have little goals and we have the ultimate big goal."

Other quarterfinal matchups in the Sunrise Region are: Green Valley, a finalist the last two years, vs. Valley at 6 p.m.; Coronado vs. Chaparral at 4 p.m.; and Silverado vs. Las Vegas at 4 p.m.

In the Sunset Region quarterfinals, also at Bettye Wilson, it's: two-time defending Southern Nevada champion Palo Verde vs. Bonanza at 4 p.m.; Arbor View vs. Spring Valley at 4 p.m.; Centennial vs. Sierra Vista at 6 p.m.; and Cimarron vs. Bishop Gorman at 6 p.m.

Regional semifinals are Thursday, with the regional finals scheduled for Monday. The Southern Nevada championship match is set for Feb. 13.