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Berkeley boys get NCS playoff spot 

The Berkeley High boys’ soccer team won their first-ever ACCAL title by the skin of their teeth on Friday, scrambling for a 2-2 tie with Richmond. 

Berkeley finished the league season with a 12-1-1 record, beating the 11-1-2 Oilers for the title and claiming an automatic bid to the North Coast Section playoffs next week. 

Sophomore Kamani Hill scored the final goal of the game on a penalty kick in the 63rd minute. The referee called a Richmond player for a shove away from the ball on a Berkeley corner kick, prompting outrage from the Richmond crowd. The call certainly seemed to be a makeup for a Richmond penalty kick earlier in the second half, as one of the linesmen called a handball on a Berkeley player. 

“I thought the ref might give us a call after he gave them that penalty,” Berkeley midfielder Liam Reilly said. “They were both trash calls. It should have been a 1-1 game.” 

Regardless, Hill sent substitute goalkeeper Alejandro Mercado the wrong way to tie the game. The goal was Hill’s 35th of ACCAL play, by far the league leader, and probably the biggest of the season. Hill missed a penalty kick on Thursday against Alameda, but said that wasn’t a worry for him on Friday. 

“I was a little nervous, but yesterday I just tried to be fancy,” Hill said. “I always take the same shot when it matters.” 

The ’Jackets needed the late goal to hold off the Oilers because they had allowed two second-half goals after taking an early 1-0 lead. Reilly hit a cross to forward Giovanni Garcia-Perez, who took the ball off his chest and slammed a left-footed shot into the back of the net in the 22nd minute.  

Since Berkeley only needed a tie to win the title, they started to sag back and play bunker defense, what head coach Janu Juarez called his “Italian defense.” But the plan backfired as Richmond scored on the penalty kick just after halftime, then again in the 55th minute. An errant Berkeley cross came too far out, and Richmond midfielder Jose-Luis Arias launched a clearance that found the feet of teammate Jorge Rodriguez. Rodriguez slipped between two Berkeley defenders before launching a beautiful shot past Berkeley goalkeeper Alex Goines for a 2-1 lead. 

The final whistle set off a wild celebration by the Berkeley players, a release of the frustration of being left out of the regionals despite tying for the league title with the Oilers. The win gave Juarez his first league championship in five seasons as Berkeley coach, and gave his senior class something to remember. 

“After four years it finally came down to this game,” senior Chris Davis said. “It wasn’t pretty, but we got the job done and got the title we’ve been waiting for.”