San Benito keeper Edgar Fernandez, coach Ben Alvarez joked, was
probably a little bored on Tuesday.
CARMEL
San Benito keeper Edgar Fernandez, coach Ben Alvarez joked, was probably a little bored on Tuesday.
That’s because from start to finish in Carmel, the San Benito Haybalers controlled the game and cruised to a 2-0 win over the host Padres.
The shutout road victory was the first of the season for San Benito (1-1-1), who rebounded triumphantly after last week’s loss to defending Central Coast Section champion Gonzales.
“We put it into play today, everything we’ve been practicing, and it went very well,” Alvarez said. “We played very hard. I’d say 95 percent of the time, we were on their side. Just pressure, pressure, pressure. We took so many shots.”
Alvarez can only remember two separate occasions when Carmel crossed into San Benito territory, leaving Fernandez’ day an uneventful one.
Said Alvarez, “Our defense was a wall.”
Josh Flores put the ‘Balers up on the scoreboard first, connecting on a penalty kick in the 15th minute, while Efrain Espinoza made the score 2-0 when he scored from the right side in the 50th minute.
With a week off since their previous matchup, Alvarez said the team has been practicing on many of the mistakes that Gonzales had exploited.
“We learned from that,” he said. “Everything just came together. The passing was perfect.”
Although Alvarez could not put an official number on the amount of shots taken by his Haybalers, he said it was in the neighborhood of 15 to 18 in the first half alone.
“We kept that goalie so busy,” Alvarez said, “he was on a run.”
San Benito will look to keep the momentum going on Thursday when they’ll travel to play King City of the Mission Trail Athletic League.
While the Mustangs played San Benito’s league rival Everett Alvarez Tuesday (no score was reported), they did upend North Monterey County 2-1 last week, a team San Benito tied 2-2 in their season opener.
Game time is 5:30 p.m.
JV Note: Like their varsity counterparts, the San Benito junior varsity team defeated Carmel 4-2 Tuesday.
Varsity Coach Ben Alvarez said the JVs have been playing very well, and they proved that much against the host Padres.
“They have a lot of kids who are exciting to watch play,” Alvarez said. “They have a lot of heart. I’m proud of those kids.”
The JV squad will play Thursday at King City. Game time is 4 p.m.
