On the road against second-place Ripon Christian on Wednesday night, the Hilmar High varsity boys soccer team showed up when it mattered most.
Tied 1-1 in the 77th minute, Ripon Christian's Daniel Lambdin fouled striker Blake Vitorino inside the penalty area. As the players and coaching staff stared down the field anxiously, Vitorino struck the ball through the right side of the goal to give the Yellowjackets a 2-1 lead, prompting a celebration down the sideline. It was a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
“When I was on that penalty spot, I knew that ball was going in,” Vitorino said. “When I banged it, I was already looking for my teammates (to celebrate).”
Now trailing with less than two minutes left, the Knights drove down the field and had a final chance to tie. Upon receiving the ball, Lambdin struck it towards the goal, but was caught by Hilmar keeper Salvador Rodriguez for a final stop to clinch the match.
The Yellowjackets have now won seven consecutive matches and have gone unbeaten in 15 straight contests. The program improved to 13-2-2, sitting comfortably at the top TVL standings at 9-0. Ripon Christian fell to 6-6-3 and 5-3-1 in league play. Despite the loss, the Knights remain in second place in the league standings.
The Yellowjackets also improved to 7-0-1 against the Knights dating back to Sept. 2004.
Wednesday’s win marked the fourth that Hilmar has by one score in TVL play. Yellowjackets head coach Louie Bettencourt said that the success is the accumulation of his players competing until the final whistle.
“Don’t think you’re going to walk onto the field and you’re going to win the game,” he said. “You have to play the 80 minutes in order to win the game.”
For Vitorino, this season’s success is attributed to the team’s chemistry, as the majority of last season’s roster are returners.
“I believe at the end of the day, we connect better, and we always want it more,” Vitorino said. “We’re family, and we always work with each other.”
Hilmar orward Zabdiel Vasquez made an immediate impact early on as he netted a goal in the fifth minute off an assist from midfielder Miguel Gonzalez for a 1-0 lead. Gonzalez moved the ball down the left side of the field and kicked it to the right side of the goalpost, which Vasquez saw a clear opportunity to score.
After going scoreless in the majority of the first half, Ripon Christian tied the match off of a goal from Jack Dooley in the 34th minute. Following a Knights’ missed shot attempt, a diving Rodriguez was too late to get the ball, leaving the goal unguarded for Dooley to score.
Tied at halftime, Bettencourt was adamant to his player about not letting up and avoiding unnecessary fouls.
Throughout most of the second half, both teams continued pushing the ball down the field and missed their shots at goal. Vitorino attempted a shot at goal near the right side of Ripon Christian’s goalbox in the 68th minute, but his attempt was caught by goalkeeper Welsey Vander Woude.
Gonzalez responded a minute later with a save of his own following the Knights’ shot attempt. He recorded another stop two minutes later that kept the Knights from taking the lead. Both of his saves helped Hilmar maintain control to set up Vitorino’s game-winner.
The Yellowjackets will return to Joe Mattos Field to host Escalon High (9-6-1) (4-4 TVL) on Friday for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. Both teams previously matched up on Jan.9, where Hilmar won 3-1 on the road.
With three games left in the regular season and eyes set on postseason appearance, Bettencourt said the team will need to continue building off their confidence.
“Don’t let your guard down. Any team can beat us,” he said. “Build off of that confidence that you are good enough to play and win these games, but nothing’s a given.”
