Soccer: Tam 4, San Rafael 2

Throughout the early part of the 2010 Tam High boys soccer season, two sophomores have seemed to be at the center of almost every scoring opportunity. Those sophomores, Tesfaye Paine and Julien Melendez, continued their offensive onslaught in a 4-2 win Friday at San Rafael, which came into the game undefeated.

Both teams started the game a bit sloppy, with neither team maintaining possession for very long. Fifteen minutes in, a deflection deep in San Rafael's end landed right at Paine's feet, and he wasted no time in blasting it into the back of the net.

The scored remained 1-0 until 15 minutes into the second half, when a Tam defender slipped while going after a long diagonal pass, and the subsequent shot got by goalkeeper Cameron Robauch to tie it up.

Five minutes later, the Red-tailed Hawks (7-0-3, 3-0-1) had a throw-in on the left side on San Rafael's side. The ball bounced high as it reached Melendez, who was nearing the end line. Melendez instantly struck the ball at a very tight angle and it beat the keeper inside the far post.

"It was the only way he could have scored a goal in that situation," Tam coach Dustin Nygaard said.

Paine was later taken down inside the 18-yard box by the San Rafael goalkeeper, and he rifled home the ensuing penalty kick for a 3-1 lead.

With about 10 minutes to play, center back James Gilmore played a very long pass from just short of midfield. On the other end, Melendez flicked it over the head of the approaching defender and took it towards the far post. Once he'd gotten the goalkeeper to lean that way, Melendez shot it just inside the near post for a 4-1 lead. San Rafael answered with a late goal for the 4-2 final score.

"Team are really trying to focus on him now, and he's making the most of the opportunities he gets," Nygaard said of Melendez. "And he's creating his own chances as well."

Up Next: Tam hosts MCAL rival Marin Catholic Wednesday at 4:30pm.