BOYS' SOCCER: Gators' Avalos knocks in 4 goals, dishes out assist

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on September 29, 2016 10:01 AM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

SEVEN SPRINGS -- Just another day at the office.

Or, on the soccer pitch, rather.

Gustavo Avalos punched in four goals and logged an assist as Spring Creek cruised past Hobbton, 5-2, in a Carolina 1-A Conference match contested on a breezy Wednesday afternoon in "The Swamp."

"He's an aggressive player," SC head coach Mario Aguilar Jr. said. "If you let him go, he's going to get goals."

Hobbton's gameplan, for 16 minutes, worked well against the high-scoring Gators -- particularly Avalos. The Wildcats put six defenders in their final defensive third, which clogged the passing lanes and disrupted Spring Creek's offensive flow.

Even long balls over the top landed at a Wildcats' cleat.

To make matters more tense, Hobbton notched the game's first goal -- a right-footed laser shot to the back post from senior midfielder Christian Vega in the 16th minute.

"The first couple of minutes, I knew they were going to try to control the game," Aguilar Jr. said of Hobbton. "I told my players to look at how they're playing, be smart and make better decisions (with the ball). We'll go from there.

"That's how it went."

Until Avalos found the net.

The sophomore striker's first goal was a "Bend it like Beckham" moment. He curled a 20-yard free kick around the Wildcats' four-man wall that sailed just under the crossbar into the upper right 90.

Avalos pumped his fist as he looked back at Aguilar.

It was a sign of things to come.

Ranked among the area's top scorers, Aguilar notched additional goals in the 54th, 60th and 76th minutes. He assisted on Martin Reynaga's goal in the 29th minute that gave Spring Creek a 2-1 advantage at halftime.

Hobbton kept its offensive shape in the second half and attempted seven shots on frame. SC backup keeper Angel Vasquez logged five saves and permitted one goal -- Vega's second mark on the day in the 73rd minute.

Vasquez replaced starter Kevin Ulloa, who took a cleat to the face just before halftime. Ulloa posted five saves, including three during the first 10 minutes of action.

"They played really well, not like Monday," said Aguilar Jr, whose team extended its win streak to three and has scored four or more goals in seven outings this season.

"It was a real aggressive game (today). Overall, it went pretty smooth. We've worked on a lot of touch, keep and pass to get open. We're going to get better."

Spring Creek (9-1-1 overall, 4-1-0 CC) travels to league-leading James Kenan on Monday.