A hat trick by Erik Arias and a brace by Edgard Kreye powered El Farolito to an 12-1 win over NPSL newcomer Vacaville Elite on a cold and blustery early evening at Boxer Stadium in San Francisco.
A First Half Surprise, Followed By a Quick Response
Farolito initially took the lead in the 4th minute, when the referee determined that a Vacaville player handled the ball in the box. Erik Arias converted the subsequent penalty kick.
Few expected Vacaville to equalize quickly, but Gedeon Bukasa did it two minutes later, an odd-looking goal after one of his teammates kicked the ball up into the air and Bukasa stuck out his leg to redirect it into the net.
The goal gave Vacaville hope, but Farolito began the process of snatching it away in the 20th minute when Omar Lemus found himself unmarked at the far post for the easy finish.
Erik Arias got back into action with a pair of goals to complete his first half hat trick. In the 27th minute, Arias was set up for the finish from a cross by Colombian defender Pedro Valoyes Rojano.
Six minutes later, Arias fought off a pair of Vacaville defenders and goalkeeper Juan Lomeli to nudge a teammate’s cross into the net.
Edgard Kreye closed out the first half scoring in the 41st minute, charging into the penalty area to head home a cross with authority and give Farolito a 5-1 lead at halftime.
Farolito Tries Out Different Combinations
As in last week’s match, El Farolito’s Head Coach Santiago Lopez made wholesale substitutions at halftime. The five players who left the match included Erik Arias and Lemus, while the equal number of substitutes included Dembor Benson and Herlbert Soto.
While Farolito had numerous choices to choose from, Vacaville had only one substitute available on the bench, with Sahil Sah coming into the match in the 35th minute and Kavin Pandian leaving.
“We definitely are trying out a different type of game plan,” Lopez said. “You know, different formations and just rotating some of the players in training to see what’s the best position for them and just practicing a lot of details. You guys are motivated and everybody knows us. We need to be going through the lead to qualify for the Cup, and then you’re just eager to try to qualify again, and you just have to stay focused.”
Farolito Pours It On in the Second Half
It took only five minutes for Kreye to kick off the second half scoring, after he received a pass from a teammate and hit a shot that tailed away and out of the reach of Lomeli.
Colombian defender Andrés Ávila Tavera was next, when he pounced on a loose ball in the box in the 55th minute for his first goal for El Farolito.
Soto was next, blasting a shot in the 58th minute that Lomeli got a hand on, but couldn’t turn away.
And then it was Benson in the 61st, with a shot from the near post.
Then the scoreboard went dark. And coincidentally there was a short pause in the scoring.
It returned with a final scoring barrage from Johan Yabur (penalty kick in the 80th minute), Benson again (header in the 83rd minute, and Kipre Sacre (shot from the edge of the box, 86th minute).
After the match, Coach Lopez talked about Vacaville’s tactics.
“I was expecting [Vacaville] to be pressing up high and being more aggressive without the ball, but they ended up playing the back line very close, and we’re fortunate that they didn’t adapt to the wide play. And after the first call, most of the goals in the first half were to the right side. Yeah, we’re very fortunate that they weren’t able to adapt to that, and we just kept possession. I think it could have been three more goals, and in the second half where they didn’t go in, but you know, that’s what it is.”
The Mystery of the Disappearing Scoreboard
Lopez was asked about the scoreboard that seemed to turn itself off in the second half of both this match and last week’s Boxer Stadium match with Real San Jose.
“Is that tied to a certain number of goals?,” he said. “I don’t know. The machine shuts down after a certain goal count, but I think it’s because it’s an old battery. They’re gonna be fixing it for the second week in a row next week. It’s not going to happen again.”
A Single Goal Wins It for the Stompers
In this week’s other match in the NPSL’s Golden Gate Conference, the Oakland Stompers earned their first win of the season on Friday night, thanks to Atonal Torres, who scored the only goal of the match in the 65th minute. Though the Stompers were the home side, the match was played at Real San Jose’s home grounds, PAL Stadium.
Next Week
El Farolito wraps up its season-opening three-match home stand next Saturday, hosting the Stompers.
Meanwhile, Real San Jose hosts Cruizers FC.
