Poway Boys Soccer Awards Ceremony

Eric Budniewski and Sean Gallagher receive recognition:

At the recent Poway High School Awards Banquet, Eric Budniewski and Sean received their award plaques. 


Sean received his for making 1st team all Palomar league and Eric was recognized for 1st Team All-Palomar league and 1st Team All-CIF San Diego Section. Philip Bru wasn't present but was also recognized for making 1st Team All-Palomar league.

Eric Budniewski  wins prestigious Jud Buechler award. 

Eric Budniewski was presented with Jud Buechler, single sport athlete award at the recent Poway high school Sports banquet. The award is voted on by all the Poway High School coaches and is presented to the athlete who they feel is most deserving.  The Jud Buechler award is one the two top awards presented annually to a Poway High athlete. 


Jud Buechler was an All-State Basketball Player at Poway before he went on the NBAWhere he picked up numerous championship rings while he was a member of the Chicago Bulls. He was recently inducted into the Poway Hall Of Fame.

Eric Budniewski has his # 8 Jersey Retired

Coach Morris made a special presentation at the end of the season banquet. 

Coach called Eric Budniewski to the podium. He then presented him with his # 8 Jersey and said no one else in Poway soccer will ever wear this number again. Coach was retiring his jersey.

Poway high has only retired 7 player jersey’s in their 40 year history. Eric is now the 8th.

The last player to have his jersey retired, Marvell Wynne, was the 1st pick in the MLS super draft in 2006 and then went on to play with the USA National team in the 2008 Olympics. He is a current member of the Colorado Rapids of the MLS.

Eric finished his 4 year career with 47 goals and 43 assists. The 47 goals puts him # 4 on the all-time Poway goal list. 

Congratulations to Eric on this great honor.

End of Season Awards

We recently held our awards banquet for the 2011-2012 season. Coach Morris presented the following individuals with awards:

Co- MVP’s – Sean Gallagher / Eric Budniewski

Defensive M.V.P. – Philip Bru

North County Tournament M.V.P. – Tony Kirouac

Coaches Award: Kyle Hess / Carlos Rodriguez

Pursuing Victory with Honor Award: Carlos Rodriguez

League Awards:

1st Team All-Palomar League:   Sean Gallagher, Eric Budniewski, Philip Bru

1st Team All North County :   Eric Budniewski, Philip Bru

2nd Team All North County:   Sean Gallagher

End of Season Rankings for Poway High School:

Ranked # 13 in the state by ESPN HS

Ranked # 34 in the state by MaxPreps

Ranked # 36 in the country in the Powerade FAB 50 winter rankings by ESPN HS

O.T. defeat in semi-finals knocks Poway out of the playoffs

Torrey Pines jumped out to a 1-0 lead 15 minutes into the game. The half ended 1-0 Torrey. The 2nd half featured many scoring opportunities for both teams and Poway was finally able to capitalize with 12 minutes left in the game to tie things up. The regulation time ended with the teams still tied so overtime it was.

Torrey was able to score the "Golden Goal" in the 1st 10 minutes to take the win and return to the C.I.F. Division 1 finals. Torrey Pines will try to avenge their loss in last years final and also avenge their loss to San Pasqual earlier in the year. Finals are set for Saturday night.

The loss marks the 3rd consecutive year that Poway has been eliminated in the semi-finals. It also was the last game for 16 Poway seniors, including 4 year lettermen Sean Gallagher and Eric Budniewski.

Poway advances to Div. 1 Semi-Finals by beating Chula Vista 2-1. 2-24-12

Poway was able to control most of the game. They got on the board 1st when Eric Budniewski sent a corner kick across the box to Ben Faller who rose above the defense and headed it into the back of the net. The remainder of the half was tight but neither team was able to take advantage and the half ended 1-0 for Poway.

Sasha Peranteau gave Poway a 2-0 lead on a real nice blast from the 20 yard line that seemed to fool the goalie. Poway looked like they were going to give Philip Bru his 11th shutout of the year until Chula Vista scored off an own goal by Poway to make the game close at 2-1. Poway held Chula Vista off for the final 15 minutes to earn the hard fought victory.

Sean Gallagher, Chris Kusunoki, Kyle Hess, Ernie Reyes and Andrew Savitt played terrific defense in keeping Chula Vista away from goaltender Philip Bru.

Poway will play @ Torrey Pines in the C.I.F. Div. 1 semi-finals @ 5:00pm on Tuesday, Feb. 28th with the winners moving on to the finals.

Poway gets revenge on R.B. with big 2nd half - 2-16-2012

What a difference a halftime speech can do. After a scoreless 1st half Poway didn't waste much time to get on the board. In the opening minute of the 2nd half Evan Marsolini scored his 1st goal of the season on a nice pass from Bryce Flores. This opened the floodgates as Poway scored 4 times in the opening 10 minutes. Ben Faller followed up a rebound, Tony Kirouac found the net for 2 quick scores and Michael Dilley finished off the 4 goal flurry with his 1st career goal. By this time Coach Morris had emptied his bench on senior night. Ernie Reyes finished the scoring as the final minutes ticked away. Ben's goal made the final score 6-0. Philip Bru notched his 11th shutout of the year, with a little help from Spencer Orr. The senior day event attracted the biggest crowd of the year.

Poway finished the year 2 points out of 1st place. Torrey Pines ended up finishing ahead of Poway. Division 1 playoff seedings will be announced on Saturday.

Poway scores late to tie Westview - 2-14-2012

Eric Budniewski got things going for Poway when he took a pass on the left wing cut it inside and blasted a shot from 30 yards out past the outstretched hands of the Westview goalie. Westview tied it up less than 4 minutes later to make the halftime score 1-1.Westview went up 2-1 on a nice set play off a free kick but with less than 4 minutes from an upset, Eric Budniewski was moving the ball into the box when he was taken down. The referee awarded him a penalty kick, which he converted to make the final score 2-2. Both teams had chances down the stretch but neither team could take advantage.

Both teams have one more game remaining before they begin their C.I.F. playoffs. Poway still has a chance to finish in 1st place but needs some help. Torrey Pines can clinch 1st with a win on Thursday.

Poway comes back to tie Ramona 1-1. 2-10-12

After falling behind 1-0 at halftime Poway was able to score with 15 min. left to tie the game up. Eric Budniewski went through a bunch of Ramona players and put a left footed shot into the corner of the net to give Poway the tie.

2-0 Lead slips away in the rain @ Torrey Pines- 2-8-2012

Poway jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the rain. Carlos Rodriguez was left alone in the box and put it into the back of the net to give Poway the early 1-0 lead. Later in the half Eric Budniewski was thrown down in the box, he got up and converted a penalty kick to give Poway the 2-0 lead. Torrey Pines then got aggressive and
scored 3 goals in the final 12 minutes of the 1st half to take the lead for good.

Torrey upped their lead in the 67th minute on a break-a-way to give them a 4-2 lead. The closest Poway got after that was a blast that hit the crossbar in the final minute of the game. The win puts the falcons in the drivers seat for the Palomar league title. Poway only trials them by one point with 3 games to play

Poway Players Sign Letter of Intents - 2-1-2012

Wednesday was a big day for 3 Poway Titans Soccer players. The boys signed their National Letter of Intents. The players and their colleges are:

Eric Budniewski - U.C. Davis
Sean Gallagher - Chico State
Philip Bru - Belmont Abbey College

Congratualtions to the boys and we wish them the best as they continue their career at the next level....

Poway beats Mt. Carmel to set up biggest game of the year. 2-2-2012

Poway shuts out Mt. Carmel 3-0. Poway jumped on Mt. Carmel early when Sasha Peranteau put back in a rebound off a throw in by Ben Faller 3 minutes into the game. They increased the lead at the 17 minute mark when Bryce Flores took a Eric Budniewski pass, made a nice move to his left and then sent a left footed blast past the goaltender from 25 yards out. The half ended with Poway leading 2-0.

Poway kept up the pressure in 2nd half and finished off the scoring in the 27th minute when Eric Budniewski hooked a shot past the wall on a free kick into the corner of the net. Poway was able to rest the starters for the remainder of the game. Philip Bru registered his league leading 9th shut-out of the year.

With the win Poway remains in 1st place in the toughest division in So. Cal. Looks like the biggest game of the year will be Tuesday when Poway travels to Torrey Pines for a 5:00pm game. The winner of the game will be in the drivers seat for the league title and a high seed in the upcoming C.I.F. Playoffs. Poway raised their record to 14-3-4 with the win.

Poway finishes strong in win @ Westview - 1-31-12

In a tightly fought contest Poway was able to come back from a 1-0 halftime deficit. The 1st half was very even and Westview got on the board when Ryan Camera's header found the back of the net. Westview kept up the pressure but the half ended with Westview holding on to the 1-0 lead.

Coach Gene Morris made some key personnel moves in the 2nd half. He moved sweeper Sean Gallagher up to forward and the move paid off. Sean converted his own rebound past the Westview goalie to tie things up. Five minutes later, Eric Budniewski sent a long cross to the side of the box that Ben Faller was able to head into the goal to give Poway the 2-1 lead.

Poway was able to hold off Westview the rest of the way for the 2-1 lead. There were some anxious moments, especially with 2 minutes left in the game. The Wolverines had a free kick that bounced around and was heading into the net, but Chris Kusunoki was able to clear off the line moments before it was going into the goal.

Goalie Philip Bru turned back 15 shots in the win and raised his record to 12-3-4.

Poway loses close game to R.B . - 1-26-12

Rancho Bernardo did what they couldn't do to us in the last two years, that was score a goal on us. The loss snapped a 4 game scoreless drought against Poway for R.B. They had not scored a regular season goal against us since 2009.

Poway dominated play the entire game by putting over 25 shots on goal vs 4 for R.B. The big break for R.B. came in the final 5 minutes of the game when an R.B. player got loose behind our defense and one timed it past our goalie. You can't say we didn't have our chances and none was better than a point blank shot by Tony Kirouac in the final seconds of the 1st half. You have to give the freshman goalie for R.B. all the credit, he stepped up time and time again to make the big save.

The loss snaps a 7 game winning streak. Our next game is Tuesday @ Westview against a tough Wolverine team. Game time is 5:00pm

Poway takes down Ramona 4-1. 1-24-12

Poway has now won 7 straight games and during the winning streak they have outscored their opponent 18-3. Philip Bru has picked up the win in all 7 games.

Things started a little differently against Ramona as the Bulldogs jumped out to the early lead on a goal in the 1st 3 minutes. It didn't take Poway very long to tie things up. Ernie Reyes re-directed a crossing pass from Eric Budniewski and rammed it into the back of the net. Eric Budniewski then gave Poway a 2-1 lead minutes later and the half ended that way.

Tony Kirouac's one touch blast into the upper right hand corner of the net in the 82 minute gave Poway the breathing room they needed. Drake Berdan finished off the scoring off a great individual effort by freshman Kellen Gallagher. Gallagher got around the defense, turned back and made a nice pass to Berdan who one timed it into the upper corner of the net for the final goal.

The win puts Poway @ 3-0 in league play. Next up is an away game at arch rival & defending C.I.F. champs Rancho Bernardo on Thursday @ 7:00pm

Poway wins 6th straight by beating Torrey Pines 3-1. 1-19-12

Torrey controlled the early part of the game until Eric Budniewski sent a nice pass down the left side to Fredy Cedillo, who took advantage of his one on one with the goaltender and put it away to give Poway the 1-0 lead at the 17' mark. Torrey got the equalizer just before half on a nice deflection of a throw in to tie it up at half.

The game was very even in the 2nd half until Chris Kusunoki sent a 50 yard free kick into the box that the goalie deflected into the air. Bryce Flores then showed off his jumping skills by towering over a Torrey defender and putting it into the back of the net at the 72' mark. Tony Kirouac made the final score 3-1 with a chip shot over the goalie in the final minutes to make the final score 3-1.

The win was Poway's 6th in a row and 2nd straight over a top 50 National program. They raised their record to 11-2-4.

Poway starts Palomar league play with shut-out win over Mt. Carmel 3-0 - Jan. 17, 2012

Poway kicked off Palomar league play by handling Mt. Carmel 3-0. Poway jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 1st half on Eric Budniewski & Ben Faller goals. They kept the pressure on Mt. Carmel for most of the game and increased the lead to 3-0 when Eric Budniewski sent a corner kick across the crease that Ernie Reyes was able to knock in for the final score. Mt. Carmel suffered their 1st loss of the season after starting the season with 8 wins. This makes the 2nd game in a row that Poway has given the opponent their 1st loss. Poway defeated San Pasqual on Thusday 1-0.

Philip Bru was able to post his 2nd straight shut-out and 9th of the season. Again the defense stepped up and provided Philip with strong play in front of him. Poway now hosts always tough Torrey Pines on Thursday @ 5:00pm.

Poway knocks off the #2 ranked team in the country- San Pasqual 1-12-12

Poway won their 4th straight game by defeating San Pasqual 1-0. San Pasqual came into the game undefeated at 10-0 and were rated # 2 in the Country and
# 1 in the State by Max Preps.

The 1st half was mostly controlled by San Pasqual as they elected to control the ball, move it around and look for the open shot. Each time they got close to the net the Poway defense was able to turn them away.

The 2nd half was much more even with lots of action from both teams. Poway was able to get on the board in the 1st 4 minutes when Sasha Peranteau sent a long ball down the right side which Eric Budniewski was able to catch up to and "one-time" it into the corner of the net. The goal set off a celebration on the Poway sideline. The problem was there were still 36 minutes to play.

Both teams had many good scoring chances. The San Pasqual goalie made a terrific diving save off a header by Sophmore Sasha Peranteau and minutes later he was able to deflect a shot by Drake Berdan off the line. Philip Bru came through with some clutch saves down the stretch and his defense played awesome. Each time San Pasqual got close to our goal, Sean Gallagher was able to clear the ball away. Carlos Rodriguez kept San Pasqual off the board in the 2nd half when he was able to clear away a ball off the line that was heading for the back of the net. Philip Bru and our defense were able to clear away the remaining chances that S.P. had and when the final whistle sounded the Poway side was able to celebrate.
Our defense has only allowed 1 goal in the past 4 games. Playing strong games were Sean Gallagher, Ben Faller, Andrew Savitt and Chris Kusunoki. Returning from injury to help in the victory was Ernie Reyes. Sasha Peranteau, Drake Berdan, Fredy Cedillo, Carlos Rodriguez, Connor Sabourin, Bryce Flores and Eric Budniewski also contributed to the team victory.

Escondido @ Poway 1-10-12

Poway is now undefeated in 10 of their last 11 games with their only loss coming in the 93rd minute in the finals of the North County Invitational vs San Augustine. They picked up their 8th win of the season last night against Escondido 3-1.

Escondido jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on a nice shot from just outside the box. The goal was the 1st allowed by Poway in 180 minutes. Bryce Flores came back with a great individual effort in the corner and crossed it to Eric Budniewski, who one timed it past the Escondido goalkeeper to tie it up at half.

Poway controlled the 2nd half and Sasha Peranteau was able to give Poway the lead for good while crashing the net. Eric Budniewski finished up the scoring and Poway came away with the win. The loss dropped Escondido to 8-4-1.

Philip Bru was able to pick up his 7th win of the season....Next up for Poway is a tough road game on Thursday vs #1 ranked San Pasqual in Escondido.

Poway @ Carlsbad - 1-06-2012

We traveled to Carlsbad and came away with a 2-0 non-league win. Both goals came in the 1st half. Chris Kusunoki sent a long pass to Eric Budniewski on the right side. Eric picked the ball out of the air and with one motion sent a screamer into the corner of the net that gave us the quick 1-0 lead. Later in the half Eric Budniewski sent a low hard corner quick across the middle of the goal where Ben Faller sent a nice header into the back of the net to make the score 2-0. Our defense took over from there and kept the Lancers off the board. We have now gone 160 minutes without allowing a goal.

Hugh Seifert, Sean Murray, Kellen Gallagher, Michael Dilley, Kyle Hess & Drake Berdan all came off the bench and provided a spark for the Poway side. Our next home game will be Tuesday @ 5:00pm vs Escondido. The big showdown will be on Thursday when we travel to San Pasqual to take on the # 1 rated team in the state and top 10 in the country. Come on out and help support our team.

Canyon Crest @ Poway - 1-04-2011

It looked like both teams were fighting through the long holiday layoff in the 1st half. There weren't to many scoring opportunities available to either team. That all changed in the 2nd half. What a difference a halftime speech can do. Coach Morris elected to make a few position and personnel changes in the 2nd half and it didn't take very long for the changes to make an impact.

Eric Budniewski took a pass from Bryce Flores @ his own end of the field, raced 70 yards down the right sideline, put a move on two defenders and then put a nice left footed shot into the net to give Poway a 1-0 lead 2 minutes into the 2nd half. It only took two more minutes to increase the lead to 2-0. Sasha Peranteau made a nice cross from the left side over to Eric Budniewski. Eric took a few steps and buried a shot into the left corner to make it 2-0. Both sides had numerous scoring opportunities after that. Included in Philip Bru's 9 saves was a break-a-way stop on the Canyon Crest forward. Our defense was lead by Sean Gallagher, Ben Faller, Andrew Savitt and Chris Kusunoki.

North County Invit. - Finals vs St. Augustine 12-22-2011

Poway started fast and led 2-0 at halftime. It looked like we were heading to a win but with 15 minutes left St. Augustine got on the board and then followed that up 3 minutes later to tie the score. The ref did not want this game to go to penalty kicks and 3 minutes into stoppage time St. Augustine was able to re-direct a corner kick into the net an earn a hard fought 3-2 win.

North County Invitational vs Escondido - 12-21-2011

In a tightly fought contest Poway was able to pick up the win in a shootout. Philip Bru came through with two clutch saves in the shootout. Poway now faces St. Augustine in the finals on Thursday @ 5:30pm.

North County Invitational vs Castle Park 12-21-2011

The Poway Titans (Poway, CA) soccer bounced the visiting Castle Park Trojans (Chula Vista, CA), 6-2 in the Quarter-Finals Wednesday.
The win puts Poway in the Semi-finals vs Escondido.

North County Invitational vs Patrick Henry - 12-2-2011

Poway wins their division by earning a tie with Patrick Henry. Philip Bru recorded the shutout.

North County Invitational vs Del Norte - 12-19-2011

The Poway Titans (Poway, CA) soccer bounced the host Del Norte Nighthawks (San Diego, CA), 6-2 in Monday's non-league bout.
With the win, Poway moves its record to 4-1 on the campaign. The Titans travel to Patrick Henry (San Diego, CA) to battle the Patriots in a non-league bout on Tuesday, December 20. The Patriots go into the bout with a record of 2-2. Patrick Henry won 1-0 in their recent non-league bout against Kearny (San Diego, CA)

North County Invitational vs Mira Mesa- 12-19-2011

Poway defeated the Mira Mesa Marauders soccer team (San Diego, CA), 4-0 in Monday's non-league outing. With the win, Poway advances its record to 3-1 on the campaign.

Hilltop Update - 12-16-2011

In a very well played game the two teams finished up at 1-1. Poway got on the board 1st just 5 minutes into the 2nd half when Freddy Cedillo sent a cross into the box to Tony Kirouac. Tony turned and sent it into the corner of the net. Hilltop kept the pressure on and finaly tied it up with 11 minutes to go. Hilltop kept up the pressure but Philip Bru made some great saves down the stretch to keep the game tied. Philip also stopped a penalty kick in the 1st half. Ufortunately for us, Eric Budniewski was taken down in the box very hard and will miss the North County Tournament with a mild seperation of the shoulder.