Chargers steam ahead into quarterfinals

It all came together for Eduardo Cortez and the Dos Pueblos boys soccer team on Tuesday.

Cortez was en fuego in front of the net, using his right foot, left foot and head to score all four goals in an impressive 4-1 Charger victory over Valley View of Moreno Valley in a CIF Division 2 second-round match at Scott O’Leary Stadium.

The Chargers (13-5-7) advance to Thursday’s quarterfinals against Corona, a 2-1 upset winner of third-seeded Valencia of Placentia. The site will be determined by coin flip on Wednesday.

Dos Pueblos' Eduardo Cortez, left, celebrates with Rodrigo Perez, center, and Vicente Perez, right, after scoring his third of four goals on Tuesday.

“I felt great, I didn’t think I’d be able to score four goals,” said Cortez, who was congratulated by several DP fans after the final whistle for his incredible performance in a playoff game.

“It’s wonderful to see a striker be so on, and most strikers are like that, where they can get hot,” DP coach Tovi Eliasen said. “He’s been on a wonderful streak. He scored two goals in our last game, scored six goals in league and had four assists in league. He’s really been on fire and it’s not only a credit to him, but also a credit to the service that he’s getting.”

Rodrigo Perez contributed on three of the goals and Kenny Lara and Vicente Perez also had assists.

Dos Pueblos' Kyle Schmechel moves past a Valley View defender in the second half.

“I thought that, especially in the midfield, our passing was some of the best it’s been all season,” said Eliasen. “That’s what sets up his opportunities. He’s getting good opportunities because of our team effort of passing in the midfield. I was very happy with that type of play today all around.”

On the first goal, Vicente Perez delivered a cross from the right wing into the penalty area that Cortez timed perfectly with his run. He met the ball with his head and slammed   it past helpless goalkeeper Luis Rivas for a 1-0 lead in the 7th minute.

Cortez almost scored again six minutes later off a long throw from Danny Rowell, but his   flick header was saved by Rivas.

The Chargers were not all finesse. Brandon Tangel and Rowell showed that they can play physical, too, which pleased Eliasen.

“They’re winning challenges and then they were able to possess and go forward,” he said.

Dos Pueblos captain Brandon Tangel takes the ball upfield on Tuesday.

Rowell, who earlier in the game took a nasty shot to the leg and had to come out for a few minutes, got overzealous on a tackle in the second half and was booked for second yellow card. He will miss Thursday’s game.

Tangel was a force all over the field. He almost single handedly took away Valley View’s air game.

“He’s an unstoppable force in the air. I don’t know what we would do without him,” Eliasen said. “He just lifts the team with his play. He’s a great captain. It’s performances like that that guys feed off of.”

Tangel came close to scoring early in the second half, rising above everyone to get his head on a Rowell corner kick. It took a diving, one-handed stab by Rivas to keep the ball out of the net.

But the Valley View goalkeeper couldn’t stop Cortez. In the 46th minute, Dos Pueblos put together a nice passing sequence that led to his second goal. Rodrigo Perez took the ball down the line on the right side and crossed it to Lara at the far post. Lara settled  the ball before sending across to Cortez who poked it in.

Valley View got a big break in the 51st minute when Francisco Milian picked off a poor punt by DP goalkeeper Christian Castillo and came in one on one. But Castillo rebounded from his mistake by making a diving save on Milian’s shot.

The Eagles, champions of the Inland Valley League, made things interesting in the 67th minute when Alexander Turkson scored on a free kick from 19 yards out to cut the lead to 2-1.

Valley View (14-5-4) suddenly had momentum and threatened to tie the score on a counterattack in the 68th minute. The shot by Luis Hernandez, however, missed wide.

Dos Pueblos withstood the surge, regrouped and put together the prettiest goal of the game. Tangel sent a long ball that Rodrigo Perez chased down in the right corner. Perez   turned and blasted the ball to the far post, where Cortez barely controlled it and cracked a left-footed shot that ricocheted off the goalkeeper’s hand and into the net for a 3-1 advantage in the 73rd minute.

“I thought I wasn’t going to reach it,” said Cortez about settling the pass. “I didn’t realize it went in until I saw the goalie.”

“I was surprised he was there,” said Perez. “I just decided to center it and hopefully something would happen and he just happened to be the guy that was there to follow it. I was very happy with that.”

Eduardo Cortez, third from left, was a popular guy on Tuesday with four goals.

Cortez and Perez combined again on the last goal in the 79th minute.

“Me and Gigo have this connection,” said Cortez. “I set him up and he sets me up.”

Said Perez: “We have a sense of communication. We just feed off each other. We feed off each other’s vibes and that’s how we score those goals.”

“They’re a wonderful pair, those two,” Eliasen said. “What great attackers they are. Sometimes it’s Rodrigo getting the goals, sometimes the roles are reversed. It was Eduardo’s day to put the ball into the net.”