Feb. 18, 2025

In many sports, tie scores are uncommon. There is overtime in football and basketball, and extra innings in baseball and softball. But not in soccer, at least in the regular season. Ties happen. And while they may not be as satisfying as a win, ties clearly are not as bad as a loss.

No team appreciates that distinction more than the Hughson boys soccer squad, which clinched the Trans-Valley League championship last week in large part because even when the Huskies didn’t win they often found a way not to lose.

The TVL standings bear that out. Hughson finished 5-2-5 in league play. There were 11 tie games in the league this season and Hughson was involved in five of them. Orestimba actually had the most league victories with six, but the Warriors also lost five of their other six TVL matches. Ripon, Hilmar and Ripon Christian all had the same number of wins as Hughson, but they also had three losses apiece to go with four ties.

“I would say it was a very competitive league. There were a lot of ties,” said first-year coach Riley Piatt, a 2020 Hughson grad.

The Huskies were just 2-3-1 after their first six TVL matches before going on a seven-game unbeaten streak in the past month in which they had three wins and four ties. That hot streak vaulted them to the top of the standings, and Ripon’s 2-1 victory over Hilmar Monday was enough to earn Hughson its first TVL soccer title since 2006.

“We celebrated on the bus coming back from our game in Riverbank,” Piatt said.

Hughson’s TVL crown didn’t earn it any love from the people who put together the playoff bracket. The Huskies  (7-11-6 overall) were seeded 15th in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 4 playoffs, meaning they were on the road Friday to play No. 2 Dixon (14-3-1). It is the fourth year in a row the Huskies have made the playoffs.

“The goal is much bigger than the TVL,” Piatt said. “We’re ready to keep going.”

There were a couple of reasons Hughson got off to a slow start. The Huskies were missing five or six players from the football team, which competed deep into the playoffs. And they intentionally played a difficult non-league schedule that included larger schools like Sierra of Manteca, Oakdale, Mountain House, Tokay, Lodi, Ceres and Johansen.

“Preseason was rough for us. We played a lot of competitive teams, but it allowed us to be ready for the league season,” Piatt admitted. “We’ve tried a lot of different lineups to get where we are now. A lot of people have stepped up for us.
At one point, Hughson lost seven matches in a row. But the Huskies didn’t lose their confidence. They rallied behind midfielders Brandon Pantoja and Cesar Ramos along with senior goalie Oscar Pena.

Pantoja, a junior, leads team with 10 goals and “makes everything happen,” according to Piatt.

Ramos, a senior, is one of the captains and leaders. “He keeps the team going,” Piatt said.

Pena, another senior, has been solid on the back end of the defense.

“He’s got great reactions,” Piatt said. “He’s saved a lot of penalty kicks.”

With the playoffs beginning, one thing is certain: there will be no more tie games. In the postseason, teams play an extra period and, if they’re still tied, they then go to a shootout with five players from each side alternating one-on-one attempts against the opposing goalie.