Senior forward Jesus Sanchez holds off a Mission opponent in the Cardinals' 1-0 semifinal win over the Mission Bears on Nov. 9. Photos by Daniel Green
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Boys' varsity soccer escaped a tense AAA semifinal against Mission on Wednesday with a 1-0 win, advancing to the championship game for the second consecutive year.

Although the Cardinals maintained their 37-game AAA winning streak with the victory, the game was anything but comfortable, and the team hit a bump in the road early on when senior forward Cameron Basaing, who has torn through AAA defenses this season as the league-leading scorer, left the game in the first ten minutes with an ankle injury.

Missing a key player, the Cardinals were on their heels in the first half, struggling to maintain their defensive shape against a cohesive Mission side, who doggedly attacked the flanks and applied constant pressure to the defense but were not able to break through and score. The Bears had a goal dissallowed for a close offside call, and spurned countless chances to go ahead.

The first half ended with the score tied 0-0, but Lowell surged forward early in the second half. Senior midfielder Max Pollard scored with a towering header off a cornerkick by junior defender Avery Fisher, giving the team the only goal of the game.

The Cardinals were able to close out the game for the win but had to frantically defend a late Mission onslaught. However, senior goalkeeper Eduardo Camacho came up huge in his box to help retain the lead.

Come support the boys at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday at Boxer Stadium in Balboa Park as they face the Y division top-seeded Lincoln Mustangs.