Peter Aguilar had the game of his life for the Santa Barbara boys soccer team, but it wasn’t enough to hold off a last minute tie against Ventura.
Aguilar had three goals — all on headers off of set pieces — and the top-ranked Dons had a 3-2 lead until the final minute, when the second-ranked Cougars scored to even it up.
Jesse Gonzales sent a free kick to Aguilar in the seventh minute to help the Dons (16-1-1, 1-0-1) take the early lead, but Ventura (12-4-3, 1-0-1) tied it up in the 14th and it stayed that way until halftime.
Aguilar put the Dons back up in the 50th off of an Alex Santana free kick but the Cougars wouldn’t go away, making it 2-2 in the 70th. It seemed to be the Dons’ victory for the taking when Aguilar scored his third in the 77th, but the equalizer just beat the final whistle.
“It was a little bit unfortunate to be up and give up the tie with virtually no time on the clock, but they always bring their best game against us,” said coach Todd Heil. “Peter played his heart out today.”
Santa Barbara hosts Buena on Thursday.
