After losing 3-2 against Los Banos on Dec. 2, Hilmar High School boys soccer head coach Louie Bettencourt had a message for his team: Never be complacent.
In that match, the Yellowjackets were ahead by two points before allowing Los Banos to score three consecutive goals to win the game. Bettencourt said his players assumed that their opponent wasn’t “very good.”
“We let our guard down a little bit, and they came back and scored and beat us,” he recalled. “I said, ‘Do you want that to happen or are you going to turn it around to where you’re going to keep working until the 80 minutes are gone?”
Hilmar, in its 11 matches since, has not lost, and extended its winning streak to five games Wednesday with a 3-1 victory against Hughson at the Deputy Dennis Wallace Soccer Fields. The Yellowjackets improved to 11-2-2 overall and remain undefeated in Trans-Valley League play at 7-0. Hughson fell to 4-7-3 and have yet to win during the TVL slate at 0-5-2.
Leading Hilmar was striker Zabdiel Vasquez, who recorded a brace with two goals. Following him was midfielder Miguel Gonzalez with a goal of his own.
Despite just being a sophomore, Vasquez was on the varsity team last season, an experience he said showed him how competitive the TVL and the varsity level is.
“I wasn’t playing as good as this year, but it did wake me up," he said. "It made me realize how competitive and how hard this league is, and how hard I have to push myself to keep scoring and keep making those plays that my team needs."
Gonzalez immediately got Hilmar on the board with a goal in the first minute. After Vasquez barely missed his shot attempt at goal in the 18th minute, he made up for it eight minutes later after kicking the ball towards the left side of the net.
Trailing 2-0, Hughson scored their only goal off a header from Carter Swain within the first four minutes of the second half.
In the 48th minute, midfielder Jared Ortega missed a shot attempt that went right side of the goal. Following a throw-in, Vasquez dribbled the ball past two Huskies and delivered another goal to extend the Yellowjackets’ lead, 3-1.
Throughout the rest of the match, both teams moved the ball down the field and missed on their shots pm goal. Despite leading, Bettencourt continuously urged his team to not let up, as Hughson nearly made a handful of shots at the goal in the final minutes.
With five games left in the regular season, Bettencourt said the team has to remain focused and ready for the final stretch.
“It’s all about keep pushing ourselves and staying focused because there’s going to be a team that’s going to give you everything [they have], and if you’re not ready, you’re gonna be beat,” Bettencourt said.
Hilmar will visit Ripon High (4-14-3, 2-4-1 TVL) on Friday for a 6 p.m kickoff.
