Wolf Pack, Scotties end in big GHL draw

SANTEE —- East County scoring leader Alexis Leath tallied the game-tying goal in the 63rd minute on Thursday (Feb.3), allowing West Hills to escape with a 1-1 draw with visiting Helix in the battle for first place in the Grossmont Hills League..

Leath, a sophomore striker, shares the goal-scoring lead with 17 goals on the season. Following a short, lead pass from Taylor Splettstoesser, Leath spun around a defender then placed the ball into the upper right-hand corner of the net.

Meanwhile, Wolf Pack goalie Maddie Morris, a senior co-captain, blanked the Highlanders in the second half.

The lone Helix goal saw a pair of seniors connect for the opening tally just moments into the contest. Katie Argeres took a feed from Katie Argeres in the 5th minute.

For Argeres, it was her fourth goal on the campaign for Helix (8-4-5 overall, 4-1-3 GHL). She ranks second on the Scotties to senior Alana Odom, who shares the region’s scoring table with Leath at 17.

The draw keeps the Wolf Pack (10-3-5 overall,5-0-3 GHL) one full game (3 points) ahead of Helix with two games remaining. However, there are still no guarantees.

The Pack, unbeaten in 10 straight GHL contests over two seasons, closes the season against both Steele Canyon and Granite Hills.

The Cougars remain mathematically alive for the GHL title thus a victory over West Hills and some help. Granite’s fourth-place Eagles, which were eliminated from the league race due to the tie, would still love to play spoiler to enhance its resume for the CIF playoffs.

West Hills host Steele Canyon on Wolf Pack Senior Night on Tuesday, then heads to Valley Stadium for the regular-season finale with the Eagles on Thursday.

GVL Showdown

SPRING VALLEY — Santana High (10-1-3 overall) can clinch the Grossmont Valley League on Tuesday when they hit the road to meet second-standing Monte Vista (8-10-1, 4-1-0 GVL).

The Sultans are undefeated in six league outings and considering the power rating of the other three GVL schools, this will be the Monarchs’ final chance to defend their league crown.

Monte Vista has gone 18-2-2 in the league over the last three seasons However, one of the setbacks was to Santana, 3-1 on Jan. 20, earlier this season.

Top 10

CARMEL HIGHLANDERS —- On Tuesday (Feb. 1), a battle of highly rated ballclubs saw top-ranked Cathedral Catholic blank No. 3 Christian, 2-0, at Manchester Stadium.

Despite the setback, the Patriots (10-2-3 overall) fell an unbelievable six positions according to MaxPreps to ninth in the CIF San Diego Section ratings despite being one of the teams in San Diego and Imperial counties with a double-digit total of wins.

Of course, the MaxPreps website has Christian listed in a league with eight teams — the Eastern League has only five schools — so its reliability is, at best, questionable.

The Patriots scoring leader is Jordyn Bugg, a freshman with 10 goals, including,multiple-goal efforts against Scripps Ranch and San Diego in league play.

Christian (4-0-2 Eastern) holds a small one-point lead over Patrick Henry (9-4-4, 4-1-1 league). The schools meet on Thursday to close the regular season and determine a champion.