If there is one thing that the Burroughs boys’ soccer team is doing better now than it did early on in the season, it is that the Indians and making the most of their opportunities.
The Indians scored three times in the first half en route to a 5-1 Pacific League victory over visiting Hoover High Friday at Memorial Field.
“We finished well today. Hoover plays tough defensively and they are hard to break down,” Burroughs coach Mike Kodama said.
Burroughs (12-2-4 overall, 8-0-2 in the league) now holds a four-point lead over Glendale High with four matches to play in the battle for the league title.
The Indians wasted little time getting on the board Friday.
Carlos Rosales faked out a group of Hoover defenders before putting the ball into the lower left corner of the goal in the 4th minute to give the Indians the lead.
Burroughs got a break in the 20th minute when a Hoover defender inadvertently fouled David Gerlach in the goal box even though Gerlach didn’t have the ball.
The Indians were awarded a penalty kick and Gonzalez converted to double the lead.
Gonzalez, who is a sophomore, scored his second goal in the 38th minute when he turned around at the top of the goal box and fired a right-footed shot up into the right corner of the goal.
Burroughs scored for the second time off a set piece in the 50th minute when Gonzalez curled a free kick over the Hoover wall and inside the right goal post to make it 4-0.
Rosales capped the scoring for Burroughs in the 66th minute by taking a ball along the left wing before sneaking inside the goal box where he finished with a shot past the Hoover goalkeeper.
“This was a great team win starting from the back and working its way up. I feel like we got a good amount of minutes out of everyone. We have big expectations this year and we want to see if we can achieve them,” Gonzalez. “We come into the league thinking that anything less than the (winning) league is disappointing. We expect to win every year and once the playoffs get here, it is a matter of who wants it more.”
Hoover (3-5-3 in the league) got on the board in the 73rd minute when Vladimir Centero finished off a cross from Kevin Mirzakhanian by putting into in the upper right corner of the goal.
