CORONA — The Sharks are circling another title, and this time they have the sense they’ve been here before.
Senior forward Ashlyn Jones scored twice to lead the Santiago girls soccer team to a 4-0 victory over Harvard-Westlake in the second leg of a CIF Southern Section Open Division semifinal on Saturday night.
“Now it’s a matter of, ‘Here we are, Déjà vu,’” Santiago coach Mike Fleming said.
Santiago (21-2-2 overall), which advanced past Harvard-Westlake 5-0 on aggregate over the two legs, now plays the Santa Margarita in next weekend’s Open Division final at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach.
“I think it’s really nice,” Jones said. “It’s my senior year so it’s good to finish strong and hopefully we can win the final again and go to state.”
The Sharks won last year’s inaugural Open Division title with a 2-0 victory over Santa Margarita. This will be Fleming’s fourth appearance in a section title match since 2015.
“Every year is new and you just have to live in the moment,” Fleming said. “I learned that after we won the double in 2015, so for me it’s really about allowing them to have their identity, live in the moment now and create that new moment.”
After failing to register a win against Harvard-Westlake in four previous meetings, Santiago claimed both matchups this week.
“I think the two-leg playoff gives us an advantage because we get to play the team first and understand and then have a better game in the second game,” Jones said.
Junior midfielder Hailey Hild and sophomore midfielder Nina Garcia added goals as Santiago completely dominated the second half after a scoreless first 40 minutes.
“Sometimes in soccer the biggest monkey to get off your back is that first goal and I told them that, ‘I feel like once we get the first then more will come,’” Fleming said. “(Corona) coach Mike Sutherland, ‘Coach Suds’, he was my coach back in the day and he’d always say, ‘Goals are like bananas. They come in bunches.’”
Jones gave Santiago a lead less than 5 minutes into the second half when she slotted in a loose ball in the penalty area.
With a 2-0 advantage secured over the two legs, the Sharks pressured for an insurance goal and Hild headed in a corner kick less than 10 minutes later.
Jones added a tap-in for her second goal in the 76th minute, and Garcia put her left foot through a ball that sailed into the upper corner of the goal to make it 4-0 in stoppage time.
“This is big for me and my team and gives us a lot of confidence going into the final,” Jones said.
Harvard-Westlake (18-6-1) played without starting goalkeeper Sasha Selvaggio, who left earlier in the week to train with Italy’s under-16 national team.
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Shutout in consecutive matches for the first time since 2006, the Wolverines created only two shots on goal in the loss.
“We were semi-dangerous but not fully dangerous,” Harvard-Westlake coach Richard Simms said. “I think Santiago had a lead to defend and they defended it well.”
As a semifinalist, however, Simms confirmed Harvard-Westlake will participate in the CIF SoCal Regional playoffs beginning March 4.