The Avery boys soccer team continues to impress soccer circles with its unbeaten start to the 2010 season. Avery shut out the Ashe County Huskies last Wednesday evening in a 3-0 final score at MacDonald Stadium, and on Monday defeated a fellow undefeated Patton Panthers club by a 5-1 final score.In Wednesday’s match against the Huskies Avery continued to show its positive progress and team approach that has been the hallmark of the team’s first two weeks of contests.
Avery got the scoring going in the 13th minute when Javier Bravo sent a pass to teammate Isauro Estrada, whose shot pealed past the keeper and into the back of the net for a 1-0 Avery lead.
Eighteen minutes later, the Vikings struck again when Bravo got into the scoring column off an assist from senior Daniel Lusk. The score would remain 2-0 until halftime.
“We came out somewhat slow offensively, unable to hold onto the ball past midfield, which gave Ashe more opportunity to attack our goal. Thanks to the defense and some great goalie play by Alex Magner, we were able to hold off a strong Ashe attack until our offense got its act together,” Avery head soccer coach Tom Evaul said following the win. “Our offense needs to do a better job of taking care of the ball once the defense gets it up to them, regardless of who we play. We seemed to be more effective with low shots as the Ashe goalie seemed to have trouble with those. We were lucky to score two goals before half as, again, the Ashe offense kept coming at us, but were unable to be productive.”
In the second half the Vikings defense continued to keep the Huskies clamped down, while freshman goalkeeper Alex Magner registered yet another clean sheet to continue his hot tending streak.
Avery added an insurance goal in the 60th minute when Estrada tallied his second goal of the match off an assist from Lusk. Lusk had attempted a cross pass in front of the goal to Isauro, but an Ashe defender stepped in front of the pass, resulting in an own goal credited to Estrada. The goal provided the final margin of victory.“At halftime, the coaching staff tried to get the offense to be more effective by looking for passes to the open space instead of passing directly to their teammates. That seemed to work better in the second half. We also implored them to be more mentally tough, as a very physical Ashe team kept pushing the guys around, frustrating them and taking them mentally out of their game. In the second half, we seemed to be more focused and did a better job of protecting the ball,” Coach Evaul stated.
This past Monday evening the Vikings hosted the Panthers from Patton High School in Morganton. Avery struck for three first half goals, paced by the speed and precision of senior Daniel Lusk. Patton had a difficult time marking the Vikings and matching Avery’s intensity on both offense and defense.
Lusk began his scoring spree with a goal in the 12th minute of play to break the ice and give the Vikings a 1-0 lead. Nine minutes later, Isauro Estrada continued his recent trend of strong offensive play as he scored off an assist from Lusk for a 2-0 Big Red advantage.
Patton cut the margin in half with a goal in the 35th minute to draw within 2-1. In the final minute of play in the opening half, Avery got the goal back as Lusk netted his second goal of the half, giving the Vikings a 3-1 lead at halftime.
The score remained unchanged until Lusk netted his third goal for a hat trick in the 59th minute which gave the Vikings a 4-1 advantage. Following a brief respite on the sideline, Lusk re-entered the game and tallied a final goal for his fourth score of the night, breaking away to peal a shot past the keeper in the 64th minute to provide the final margin of victory.
Avery continues to play solid soccer that belies the team’s youth. A mesh of experience and talent has blended well since the team’s last scrimmage in Hickory just prior to the kickoff of the regular season.
“We are getting better as a team compared to the Hickory scrimmage, but we still have a ways to go, especially with mental toughness, and our offense holding onto the ball. This week will be a key week to see how mentally tough we actually are, as our competition will be strong all week,” Coach Evaul explained.
The coach also added how the team’s defense, a mix of older and younger players, has been an anchor to hold the team together in the early season.
“In my opinion defense is the strongest part of our game right now. It is led by senior Brock Yackey at sweeper, with two rookies in Alex Magner in goal and Carson Williams at fullback. Sophomore Heraclio Flores is the other fullback, and junior Austin Lyons complete a defense that has recorded four shutouts to start the season,” Coach Evaul said. “On the offensive end, senior Daniel Lusk is a major threat due to his speed, and as a result leads the team with assists, primarily due to his ability to effectively cross the ball from the corners. Leading the scoring right now is Isauro Estrada. We have missed Jorge Arreola due to a concussion and broken nose, but hope to have him back this week. With those three guys as threats, a defense will have to decide who the stronger player is to mark, and all that will do is open the game up for the rest of the guys.”
