Mustangs shutout Alisal for third straight victory.
GILROY – With a one-goal lead halfway through the second half, the Gilroy High boys soccer team was back on its heals – fending off the lethal Alisal attack. One quick strike would either tie the score for Alisal or give Gilroy a much-needed insurance goal.
Gilroy (4-3-2) was finally able to breath a sigh of relief in Wednesday’s intense, physical battle in Mustang Stadium when forward Juan Llamas headed in a goal off a free kick from teammate Alfonso Motogalvan.
“I just made a run and I took it. I got a good lock on the ball. Alfonso passed it right to me,” said Llamas, following the 2-0 home win over Alisal. “It was hard. We showed intensity. Thanks to Coach Bryan (Hall) and all the coaches.”
The Mustangs – who were without several of their top players – preserved their third straight victory and, with an assist from a stingy Gilroy defense, goalkeeper Ernesto Torres recorded his third straight shutout.
“I thought we were a little flat in the first half. We made some adjustments in the second half and we played a strong half,” head coach Albert Marquez said. “This is our third win in a row going into the break. We’re starting to click on all cylinders. Now, we just get healthy for league and Horacio (Arteaga) and his brother will be back.”
Gilroy was missing their senior captain – who was away for the month of December in Mexico for a wedding along with his younger brother Artemio Arteaga. In addition, junior striker Javier Hernandez – a talented national player – sat out a one-game suspension due to a team disciplinary action. The Mustangs also overcame the loss of four-year varsity midfielder Luis Zavala.
After two yellow cards went his way, deadly striker Jorge Plata was forced out of the game with 25 minutes remaining. And towards the end of the second half, starting fullback Danny MacPhail had to leave because he had to go perform in a school play.
“The defense was huge. Marc Griffis has played defense the last couple of games and he’s doing an outstanding job,” Marquez said. “Our goalkeeper had his third shutout in a row. Halfway through the second half we lost our starting fullback Danny MacPhail so we played a freshman Neil Martin – who did a great job filling in.”
The Mustangs broke the scoreless tie 13 minutes into the second half when Motogalvan’s outside blast skipped off the grass, over the arms of the Alisal goalie, and into the net. Motogalvan rushed to the sideline and addressed the crowd like he had scored in a World Cup game. With these two powerhouses going at it, the non-league contest had the same intensity.
“I think that is an excellent Alisal team that we beat. We’ve played all the top teams from the MBL – Alvarez, North County, Seaside and Alisal – and I think they are the best in the league,” Marquez said. “They are a very tough team. This is a huge win for us.”
The Mustangs’ three-game winning streak also includes a 2-0 victory over Independence and a 3-0 triumph over Seaside.
Up next, Gilroy has a long break until its Jan. 10 league opener against Salinas at 5:30 p.m. in Mustang Stadium.
