Sequoia FC soars into playoffs

It’s not often that an expansion team earns its way into the playoffs in its first year, but Sequoia FC — the newest addition to Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL) along with V.C. United — has been proving naysayers wrong all season long.

Technically, Sequoia still has one regular season game left, but after a convincing 10-0 performance against Merced Atlas on July 11, the squad has already qualified for the PASL National Championships to be held in Sacramento starting July 24.

The berth has even FC surprised.

“I think if you had asked our players if we’d go to the playoffs at the start of the season, they probably would’ve said ‘No,’” FC coach Miguel Baez said. “We have some great soccer players, but for most of them, this is the first time playing indoor soccer. They picked it up really quick.”

No one blamed Sequoia for dropping its franchise opener against a mediocre Las Vegas Knights team (3-4).

And, likely, no one would’ve raised an eyebrow if Sequoia had struggled with just one or two wins all summer.Most expansion teams do.

But FC (5-2), a team that calls Lindsay home and is composed mostly of Central Valley talent, can thank the division-leading San Diego Fusion (6-1) for the surge in confidence to shock the PASL.

Baez hearkened back to a June 6 matchup against the Fusion, who have claimed four of the past five championships, in San Diego.

Though FC lost, 4-2, Baez said the game showed his boys they could hang with the best.

“We were missing some of our guys to injuries and they had most of their pros with them,” Baez said. “That ended up being one our best games of the season.”

FC has been on a four-game winning streak since and faces the 0-5 San Diego Crew in Saturday’s season finale.

Baez and his youngsters — one of the stars, Eligio Morales out of Tulare Western, has yet to complete his senior year of high school — are scheduled to play their first postseason game at 10:30 a.m. for pool play on Saturday, July 25, against a team to be named.

All playoff games will be held at Sacramento’s Arden Indoor Soccer Arena.

Baez said his squad will have to earn its respect all over again despite the early success.

“I think most people expect us to lose our first game and leave early,” he said. “Other teams have looked at us and thought, ‘They’re a new team, they’re not a strong team.’

“But we’ve proven we can play with the best teams in the league.”