While Plant City officially opened their season against St. Pete’s Shorecrest Prep on Monday night, the Raiders returned to Plant City for a 3-2 win in their home opener against Strawberry Crest on Tuesday night.
Despite the loss of 13 seniors from 2020, Plant City was able to retain seven of their starting 11 heading into 2021.
“We did have 13 seniors last year,” head coach Benjamin Henderson said. “From our playoff game against Viera, we brought back seven of our 11 starters but it just so happens that we graduated our top three goal scorers. So we feel confident on the back end, especially with (Esteban Navarrete) back in net, but it’s just finding ways to manufacture goals.”
Plant City and Strawberry Crest were previously district rivals, with the Raiders claiming the 6A District 11 title in 2020 on the heels of a 15-3-1 season and the Chargers falling just short in the district semifinals as the second seed, but Plant City has moved up to 7A in 2021. With both being local Plant City schools however, the competition remains fierce between the two schools.
Plant City opened the scoring on a penalty kick in the 18th minute, converted by senior Steven Nagrete, but Crest answered right back.
In the 21st minute, forward Eliel Arroyo tied the contest with a long shot from the left side of the 18-yard box before giving the Chargers a lead in the 28th minute by burying a header from the incoming cross.
Plant City was knocking on the door in the 37th minute following a series of corner kicks that provided several opportunities, but the Chargers were unable to break through. In the 40th minute, just moments before the halftime whistle, Plant City sophomore Osvaldo Rodriguez sent a ball into the box and Simon Gonzalez redirected the attempt for a goal, knotting the match up at 2-2 heading into halftime.
Plant City controlled the pace of play early in the second half and broke through on a goal in the 48th minute from sophomore Kooper Yacinich, converting on a rebound chance to give the Raiders a 3-2 lead that they would keep.
The remainder of the contest was tense, seeing Crest narrowly miss a number of chances that would have brought them level and seeing Plant City send a few shots just wide that would have extended their lead. But ultimately, it was Plant City that claimed victory when the final whistle sounded.
The challenge now, according to Henderson, is getting players on the same page as they return to the high school season from the club teams that they play for in the offseason.
“All of these guys are on their own club teams, so I like to look at us as their national team,” Henderson said. “In the offseason they’re all with their club teams doing their own thing, so it’s meshing everyone together at once into a system that works best for us. I’m not someone who says, ‘we’re going to play this system.’ It’s taking the players that you have and building a system around that.”