jjohnson@heraldsun.com; 419-6667
DURHAM -- Jordan's run through the regular season ended in perfection with a 2-1 win over Riverside, and now the Falcons are looking forward to their next challenge in the state playoffs.
"It's been a remarkable season," Jordan coach Steve Turner said. "I'm really proud of the team. We knew tonight was going to be a tough match. It's always a dogfight against Riverside."
Heading into the game, The Falcons knew what was at stake. While other Jordan teams have gone through seasons without a loss and had ties on their record, none had won every match they played.
"Going through the regular season undefeated was a big deal for us because no other Jordan team had done that," said junior defender Nolan Cain, who scored the first goal for Jordan. "We knew we had a really good team and we just worked hard to get through the season."
Cain's goal early in the first half took some of the pressure off the Falcons. If they felt it coming into the game, it went away then.
"There wasn't a lot of pressure thinking about going undefeated," sophomore forward Joaquin Del Rosario said. "We didn't want that pressure to get into our heads and it didn't."
Jordan played with the lead until Riverside's Gabe Rivera emerged from a gaggle of players following a free kick and scored out of a crowd to make it 1-1 with about 26 minutes left in the first half.
Riverside coach Pat Roeber said he never expected anything less than a close game against Jordan. Their previous regular-season game also was settled by one goal.
"A lot of it is familiarity because a lot of the players also play with each other on club teams," Roeber said. "The teams play a similar style. They just executed a little better than we did."
Jordan, the top-ranked team in the state and No. 4 in the ESPN Fabulous 50, did not secure the victory and the PAC-6 title until the final three minutes of the game when Del Rosario scored the game-winner.
"It was a great finale going into the playoffs," Turner said.
Both Jordan (19-0, 10-0) and Riverside (13-3-1, 8-2), which finished second in the PAC-6, will host first-round playoff games next week. Their opponents will be determined Saturday when the NCHSAA finalizes the brackets.
