The El Camino Real boys soccer program earned its eighth CIF L.A. City Section title in dramatic fashion Friday thanks to senior captain Baldimir Coto.
Coto scored the overtime golden goal to secure a 1-0 win over West Valley League rival Birmingham (25-3) in the City Open Division final at LA Valley College. The goal came on a header off a corner kick.
The championship is Ian Kogan’s third as a head coach at El Camino Real (20-2). He previously guided the Royals to titles in 2018 and 2020 and won two as an assistant coach in 2009 and 2015. Kogan is an ECR alumnus and won a City Section championship as a player in 1999.
El Camino Real was the No. 1-seeded team in the Open Division and beat eighth-seeded Granada Hills Charter — a game in which Coto scored two goals — in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, the Royals defeated fifth-seeded South Gate 4-1 in penalty shots after the teams were scoreless in regulation and overtime. Goalkeeper Robert Montoya made two saves in penalty shots.
Second-seeded Birmingham tied El Camino Real for the West Valley League title this season.
Granada Hills girls win Open title
The Granada Hills Charter girls soccer team beat rival Cleveland 3-1 in the City Open Division final Friday at LA Valley College for its sixth City Section title and first since 2021.
The Highlanders (14-4-2) scored two goals in the first half and added a goal in the second half.
The Highlanders and Cavaliers (18-3-3) were co-champs in the West Valley League. Their only league losses were to each other.
Granada Hills was the No. 3 seed in the Open Division and shut out Venice in the quarterfinals before beating second-seeded San Pedro in penalty kicks, 6-5, to earn a spot in the championship game.