The Roosevelt High boys soccer team's regional title hopes came crashing down within the first 40 minutes of the Division I regional semifinal match.

The third-seeded Rough Riders, who relied on three second-half goals in a first-round win, could not work the same magic after trailing by two at the half. Poway, the No. 7 seed, utilized its height advantage on defense and turned to a long-ball game to break it open for a 3-1 victory in the Southern California D-I regional semifinal in front of an estimated 400 fans Thursday at Ramirez Field at Fresno Pacific.

Poway (22-2-4) advances to the regional championship against top-seeded Santa Monica at 1 p.m. Saturday at Warren High in Downey. Santa Monica, unbeaten at 28-0-1, shut out No. 4 Banning-Wilmington 3-0 in the other semifinal.

Roosevelt (20-5-5) came out a little flat against Poway, which scored two goals in the first 21 minutes. Spencer Skeen scored in the 16th minute, and E.J. Schneekluth followed with a 12-yard, one-on-one penalty kick 5 minutes later. The Titans split up the 6-hour-plus drive from San Diego by staying overnight in Bakersfield on Wednesday and then pulling into Fresno early and refreshed before the 5 p.m. match.

"I was worried we would have dead legs if we drove the whole way in one day," said Poway coach Eugene Morris, whose team upset No. 2 Saddleback-Santa Ana 3-2 (penalty kicks) in the first round. "We came in as the seventh seed and thought we deserved a higher seed. We were the only San Diego team in the D-I bracket."

The 6-foot-3 Weinberg also came up big against Roosevelt. He finished with eight saves, including five in the second half when the Rough Riders fired eight of their 10 shots on goal.

The Titans took a 3-0 lead in the 51st minute when Collin Wooster scored on a diving header off a corner kick by sophomore Alex Henry, who picked up his team-high 14th assist. It was Wooster's 12th goal of the season.

"We're used to playing bigger guys in San Diego, but we knew this team would be balanced," Wooster said. "We're pumped and excited to play in the regional championship."

The Rough Riders pushed their offensive attack in the final 20 minutes, and it paid off. Roosevelt's Eder Sanchez just missed an open shot when Weinberg came out of the box to scoop up the ball. On the next drive, Jose Perez connected on a line-drive shot that sailed in untouched from 20 yards out for Roosevelt's only goal in the 71st minute.

"After the half, we pushed up three forwards and got the goal," Roosevelt defender Victor Gutierrez said. "It was all or nothing. They were big and they did try to put us down at the half."

The Rough Riders lost one of their key midfielders, Jorge Beltran, who missed the second half because of a back injury. In the final minute of play, frustration set in as Roosevelt's Miguel De La Torre received a red card for an intentional foul.

"After our emotional 3-2 win on Tuesday, it's so hard coming back and getting up for this one," said Roosevelt coach Joel Munoz. "For the first 20 minutes, we were just chasing them. They were the best team I've seen so far with their size, speed and the ability to knock the ball around. Their defense was tough. Even down at 3-0, it was no quit for our kids and we got the goal. It's just life, you learn to win and lose."

DARRELL WONG / THE FRESNO BEE

Poway's Brian Romag, left, takes the ball away from Roosevelt's Marco Cisneros during the first half of the regional semifinal game on Thursday, March 6. More photos

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DARRELL WONG / THE FRESNO BEE

Poway's E J Schneekluth, left, scores on a penalty kick against Roosevelt goalie Cesar Martinez during the first half of the Rough Riders' playoff defeat on Thursday.