GIRLS SOCCER: Spartan work ethic
Avesyan, Boyd have La Canada thinking CIF title
Above: La Canada's Colleen Boyd, left, and Nancy Avesyan. (Staff Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz.)
By Scott Galetti, Staff Writer
LA CANADA - La Canada High School's girls soccer team may have the recipe for success: a balance on offense and defense. And this mixture comes from a pair of seasoned seniors.
They're a pair of players who are at different positions for the betterment of the team.
Senior forward Nancy Avesyan and senior goalkeeper/defender Colleen Boyd have been fixtures on the Spartans' soccer team since their freshmen season.
This year, the duo has helped turn the team into one of the best in the CIF-Southern Section.
Avesyan, who never had played forward until she entered high school, is the Spartans' offensive leader with 26 goals and 20 assists. The Rio Hondo League's offensive Most Valuable Player a year ago, she has 15 goals and 12 assists in league play this season.
"Over the years, she's become a team player, as indicated by the fact that she has almost as many assists as she has goals," La Canada coach Louie Bilowitz said. "She's very quick and can hit rockets with either foot."
While Avesyan is launching rockets, Boyd is busy deflecting them.
She was the team's starting goalkeeper at the beginning of the season but moved to defender along with Jessica Pih and Jenelle Rotenberg. Since the move, the Spartans have allowed just three goals.
"She's arguably one of the best goalkeepers in the area," Bilowitz said. "Since I moved her to defender, our defense has been so strong, and we have given up fewer goals (10) than any other team in Division IV this season."
Boyd, the Rio Hondo League's defensive MVP last year, has helped provide an almost impenetrable wall on defense.
"Against Maranatha, one of our starting defenders was injured, and to get us through the game, my coach moved me to defender, and Eirene (Kim) to goal," Boyd said. "It ended up working out fantastically for us, so Louie kept it that way and I've been playing defender ever since."
It's worked so well that the Spartans (17-3) allowed just two goals in league en route to a 10-0 record and league title.
"It was amazing," Boyd said. "It was a solid, close-knit group of girls, and we all wanted it badly and worked really hard. It was just a really fun experience."
Experience runs in Boyd's family.
Her father, Bill, played basketball at Crescenta Valley High School and USC and her grandfather, Bob, was the long-time men's basketball coach at USC.
"She has athletics in her genes," Bilowitz said.
Boyd, according to Bilowitz, also has heart.
"Colleen is a dominant athlete," he said. "Her skills are decent, but her intensity is unmatched."
Boyd's sense of being a team leader also is unmatched. Bilowitz said Boyd stays after each varsity game on the bench to root for the junior varsity team.
"I've never had anybody have that kind of commitment to the program," Bilowitz said. "Every away game, she leads the JV team in singing the alma mater, and she shows them good team spirit."
Boyd and Avesyan could be soccer's version of Thunder and Lightning.
"Colleen is really tall and aggressive, and that's very helpful in the back," Avesyan said. "And I'm the little speedster up top."
Whatever name you want to use, the duo has been instrumental in the Spartans' success.
"We've been working really hard, and every year we've been talking about winning league and going far in CIF, and this year, it's been coming together," Avesyan said.
Boyd said she would like to end her high school career on a successful note, but she'll be content with whatever transpires.
Boyd and Avesyan will be playing soccer at the collegiate level. Avesyan will attend Cal State Northridge, where she will have the opportunity to play forward.
"Cal State Northridge recruited her as a midfielder, but saw her play forward and may use her in that capacity," Bilowitz said. "She's going to be a great college player."
Boyd wanted to stay local but signed on at Oregon State.
"I wasn't intending on leaving Southern California, but Oregon State's coach had meetings with my club coach and flew down just to watch a training session, so I thought it would be the polite thing to go up for a visit," Boyd said. "I was blown away when I got there. All it took was one visit and one meeting with the coach and I was sold."
The team's sales pitch is getting all the players to believe they can win it all.
"I'm hoping that we're going all the way in CIF and winning it," Avesyan said. "We have a lot of heart, and I think that's going to get us far."
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Melendez worked as a correspondent for the San Gabriel Valley Tribune for three years and later landed a job as a freelance writer at the Los Angeles Times before accepting an offer at The Orange County Register covering high schools. Melendez covered Major League Soccer at The Register for three years before being promoted to report on the Lakers, Angels and Dodgers for the Web. Melendez also worked for the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Fresno Bee, Oakland Tribune and The Boston Globe. E-mail opinions, suggestions and tips to miguel.melendez@sgvn.com. |
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wow la canada. how those cif dreams doing for you?
Marshall lost 2-0 to Viewpoint.
How about profiling Alverno!! League Champs and have moved on to the second round...
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So..maybe now we can see some of the other girls' teams on the front page FSHA loses and so does LCHS..What happened with the Marshall girls..
Arcadia 6, Highland 2
Ann Marie Tangorra had two goals and two assists, Kristi Kettle had two goals and Donna Bennett and Anja Klotzle each added one for Arcadia (15-5-4), which led, 2-0, at halftime. Samantha Johnson scored both goals for the host Bulldogs (16-6-2). Jaclyn Weinstein made 10 saves for the Apaches, who outshot Highland, 22-14. Cynthia Peck had 16 saves for Highland.
La Salle 1, La Canada 0
Lindsey Jahnke scored on a free kick in the 34th minute for La Salle (10-10-1) in the victory over host La Canada (17-4).
LaSalle, the Wild Card team, pulled off the upset and beat La Canada this afternoon, 1-0.
It's true, Bob. I'd love to see our local teams make a strong CIF showing. Tough to see LC and LS face each other first round, but I hope LC, SP, SM, Pas, Arcadia, Westridge and Poly all do great. Go SGV teams!
It would be nice to see someone from the Boyd family get to the finals.
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Great article -- Good luck, LC!!