Your future, our focus
Auturo Hernandez wanted to make sure Utah State University Eastern came for the rain and nothing else last Saturday.
He certainly played his part in making that happen
The freshman defender scored the only goal Northwest College would need on a spectacular play in the first half, and the Trappers earned two more scores en route to a 3-0, rain drenched victory in their season opener at home.
“I was telling the guys, ‘Don’t give [USUE] anything, make them realize they came here for no reason,”’ Hernandez said of his pep talk with his team. “And I think we did that. We killed them off at the end.”
Hernandez started things for NWC (1-0) around the 25th minute when he dribbled the ball around the defense of Connor Corgiat near midfield, and fired a long cross kick that found the back of the Golden Eagles’ net.
“That was an amazing feeling … my first college goal,” Hernandez said. “It was obviously a total team effort today, but it was great to get that first one under my belt.”
Hernandez’s goal stood through the first 45 minutes as a pressing NWC attack limited USUE to zero shots on goal before the break.
“I thought we kept up the pressure on them all game long,” Trappers coach Rob Hill said. “We played with intensity and didn’t let off for even a minute.”
That became evident after a nearly 45-minute rain and lightning delay stopped the action late in the second half. Before the restart, Golden Eagles goalkeeper Dylan McIllce could be heard complaining of groin pain due to ‘Too many goal kicks’ after the Trapper attack pressured the keeper continuously.
Trappers goalkeeper Erik Wehse certainly appreciated the help, as he was Hill’s lone goaltender after Alex Abalan was forced to sit due to a concussion suffered during the preseason.
“Yeah, that was fun for me,” Wehse said of the slow day in goal. “Nothing too hard came my way, and that’s just a testament to the pressure my teammates put on them all day.”
NWC made it 2-0 at the 35:32 mark in the second half when Brayden Searle found Javier Sanchez near the Golden Eagle goal for a chip-in.
After the weather delay, play resumed with 9:15 to go, and at 7:46, Sam White pushed a cross kick through the air to Richard Ridlon who headed it in to complete the scoring.
“I’m glad we were able to spread the scoring around and not rely on one guy to get it done for us,” Hill added. “That kind of shows me what kind of team we could be this season, and that’s really encouraging.”
Results of the Trappers’ Wednesday and Thursday matches will be available in the Tuesday edition of the Powell Tribune.