The562’s high school soccer coverage for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Long Beach Poly soccer alum Kennedy Justin.
The562’s coverage of Millikan Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Brian Ramsey and TLD Law.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Former Jackrabbits Wendell “WoWo” Moe, Jr. & Tyson Ruffins.
It’s hard to imagine a better start to the new year for the Millikan girls’ soccer team than their result on Tuesday night.
The Rams hosted defending Moore League champion Long Beach Poly at DeHaven Stadium, but proved relentless hosts with an offensive outpouring in the first half. Sophomore Jayla Cortes opened the scoring with a 12th-minute goal, the start of a four-goal first half for Millikan before cruising in the second half to a 4-0 win.
“It’s a great start. In the first half, the group was ready to go with the early goals, and we were able to keep our foot on the pedal,” said Millikan coach Tino Nunez. “Obviously, we get a little picky in the second half, but defensively we didn’t let down. We were going to make them earn anything they got, so I’m just proud of the group for their effort, especially that first half.”
The four goals came in a 30-minute span for Millikan, which outshot the Jackrabbits a lopsided 17-4. After Cortes’ goal, the Rams added to the lead with scores from Caoimhe Tighe, Adelyn Murphy and Sarah Thaut.
“It was great,” Cortes said after the game. “The energy that our team brought today, I can’t even put it into words. Everybody was feeding off of each other’s energy and I think that putting the game away early really helped with that.”
The Jackrabbits came into the game trying to assert themselves as the more physical team, but two yellow cards while outfouling the Rams 7–4 gave Millikan a handful of opportunities on set pieces.
The first few chances sailed long in the opening 10 minutes for the Rams, before a set piece landed inside the box for Cortes. From there, Cortes weaved around a handful of Poly defenders before tucking away a goal while facing one-on-one with the goalkeeper.
“It kind of speaks for itself,” Cortes said of the goal. “I was so close to the goal, and I was just thinking, ‘Find the ball and keep pushing through.’ I obviously found myself one-on-one with the goalie, and I just wanted to put it away, and I did.”
The Rams took advantage of another set piece following a Poly yellow card, as London Perez sent another ball into the box that ricocheted to Caoimhe Tighe. Tighe placed her shot from 20 yards out into the corner of the goal to double Millikan’s lead in the 20th minute.
Millikan rang the bell once again in the 37th minute, as Kristyne Zobler sent a cross into the box that became tangled between players from both sides. Adelyn Murphy then entered herself into the mix, sliding in while connecting with the ball to find the back of the net for Millikan’s third goal.
Sarah Thaut added to the lead with the clock stopped before half after a beautiful cross into the box from Elle Aoun. Thaut tapped the ball into the right corner off the inside of her left foot to send Millikan into the break with a comfortable 4-0 lead.
“I think seeing everyone get involved just shows our community and just how happy we are for each other,” Cortes said. “Then on the sideline you see us running up and down and high fiving—I think it just shows who we are as a team.”
The Rams have been playing this season without the leader of their attack in senior Bella Nunez, who faced a season-ending injury during her club season. Millikan was also without leading goal-scorer Alexandra Rios for most of the game, but the Rams have continuously found girls to step up and make an impact.
“Whether it’s girls who are returning or first-year varsity players, I think collectively as a group they’re stepping up,” Nunez said. “I think the difference between this year and last year is that this year we’re ready to step up. Last year, we took four hits due to ACL injuries, and I don’t think our girls were quite ready for that. I think we learned from last year, and they’ve been ready to step up, and hopefully it continues.”
Defensively, the Rams posted a clean sheet thanks to a smooth outing from goalkeeper Samantha Ortiz, who collected four saves on the night.
Millikan made several substitutions in the second half and created a fair number of chances to add to its lead, but instead cruised to the 4-0 win. Credit Poly goalkeeper Zadie Kuykendal, though, who came up with five second-half saves to help minimize any extra damage.
The Rams will look ahead to a non-league matchup against Orange Lutheran on Friday before returning to league play against Wilson on Tuesday. Long Beach Poly will be back in action hosting Compton on Thursday.
