Aila Liu
On Dec. 6, Aragon’s boys varsity soccer team (2-0-1 overall) played a tough, rainy game against Capuchino (1-2 overall), where they took home an impressive win with a score of 5-0.
Aragon played a dominant offensive game where the ball was in their possession for most of the game.
“We were quick on the ball, moving around the field nicely [and] keeping possession,” said head coach Nick Carrara. “We were clinical in the front, [and] scored when we needed to.”
Aragon’s game started off strong when the first two goals were scored within just six minutes of the game starting. The first of which was scored only two minutes after the kick-off when junior midfielder and striker Damian Samano scored an impressive header after a corner kick.
“I know most high school teams aren’t organized in the back, so going back post, … I was basically there by myself,” Samano said.
At 34 minutes into the first half, junior midfielder Brian Cervantes made a run down the field, passing his defenders to score the second goal of the game.
As the rain picked up, both teams slowed their pace, unable to score for the rest of the first half. Furthermore, hints of weakness in Aragon’s defense were evident after a couple close chances to score by Capuchino.
Carrara highlights what Aragon’s defense needs to do for improvement in the future.
“[We need to] just challenge the ball in the air consistently, win the first ball and keep possession of it in the back,” Carrara said.
As the second half began, Capuchino’s defense started to ramp up, in hopes to prevent the Dons from making another goal. However, Samano was still hungry for some points and he scored another impressive goal from 25 yards away.
Capuchino seemed to lose hope at this point with the score sitting at 3-0, subbing out a few of their best players to have the more inexperienced players have some time in the game. This only meant that Aragon was able to extend their lead. Samano took this opportunity and scored his third goal of the game after the wet ball slipped out of Capuchino’s goalkeeper’s hands. His third goal marked a hat-trick, something that rarely happens at this highly competitive level of soccer.
“Yeah, I mean that was definitely a one time thing,” Samano said.
With only eight minutes left in the game, senior Yahir Villanueva scored an amazing goal to finish off the game, curving the ball into the goal from a corner kick.
This impressive game ended 5-0, further emphasizing the skill Aragon has to offer on their boys varsity soccer team and the high chances it has to come home with the championship for the second time in a row.
“I think if this team stays healthy and we keep working hard, we could definitely win the championship and who knows how far we can go,” said Carrara.
Looking back at last year’s team, the team had a strong season winning the Peninsula Athletic League championship with a league record of 5-0-5 and a record of 10-4-7 throughout the entire season.
“The team was really good,” said sophomore midfielder Andrew Alatta. “We all connected very well and we had a lot of key players on our team.”
One of the team’s strengths was in their offensive lineup where the team stacked up an impressive 35 goals throughout the season. The team also showed impressive defense where they were only scored on 18 times throughout the entire season, emphasizing the high level defense and goalkeeping of their players during games.
“The team’s defense was very strong,” Alatta said. “We kept a lot of clean sheets and our keeper was a key [player] in our league title.”
A clean sheet is when a team manages to prevent being scored on throughout an entire match.
Aragon’s players look forward to this upcoming season with high hopes of winning the PAL championship for the second time in a row. The team also looks forward to working with a new coach, hoping that they can quickly build chemistry before championship games.
“I think it’s gonna be pretty easy [to build chemistry with our coach] because a lot of the players already know him and I’ve heard a lot of good things about him,” Alatta said.
After a strong start to the season, Carrara and the team look forward to success in the future.
“[We’re excited for] more wins, more goals, more clean sheets, playing good football and [facing] some good competition,” Alatta said.
The next game Aragon soccer will be participating in is at San Mateo on Dec. 15. at 4:30 p.m.
