ROUNDUP : Soccer Coach Forced to Watch Katella’s Loss From Bleachers

It was a bad night for Katella soccer Coach Ray Smith in the final of the Brea Rotary Soccer Tournament Saturday at Brea-Olinda High School.

First, he was ejected with 37 minutes remaining in the game. Then, as he watched from the bleachers, Cerritos Gahr scored the game’s only goal to defeat the Knights, 1-0, in the tournament championship game.

“I wasn’t even looking at the referee when he came out of nowhere and red-carded me,” Smith said. “It’s crazy.”

“It was unwarranted for him to get kicked out,” agreed Gahr Coach Dave Christensen. “I feel bad for him.”

But referee Alfredo Munoz didn’t see it that way.

“He was kicked out for abusive language,” Munoz said.

Gahr (7-1-2) scored the winning goal with 23:30 left in the match when Wilfredo Rivas’ shot bounced off Knight goalkeeper Robert Klatt’s chest in front of the goal and Sean Wohland knocked the rebound into an open net for the score. Katella fell to 7-1-2.

Klatt, who had eight saves, was coming back after missing six games because of a shoulder injury.

“It was an even game the whole time,” Smith said. “The goalkeeper fumbled the ball and they capitalized on it.”