Alfredo Ibarra provided a spark that ignited the Santa Barbara High boys soccer team on Tuesday, as the Dons started out on their title defense at the South Torrance Tournament with a pair of victories.
The two-time defending champion Dons defeated Fairfax 6-1 followed by Arroyo Grande 2-0 and have now won 12 straight at the tournament since 2009.
Ibarra scored three times and assisted on another in the first 20 minutes against Fairfax. Jelan Hutton scored again in the 22nd minute for a 5-0 lead. George Guerrero added another goal in the 54th minute for good measure. Tanner Wolf was who converted Ibarra’s pass for a score.
Against AG, Santa Barbara posted a shutout by allowing only one shot throughout the game. The Dons’ offense wasn’t quite as prolific, but Alec Larson put the Dons up 1-0 in the 22nd minute.
Peter Gamboa made it 2-0 early in the second half off a free kick from Hutton.
Santa Barbara is now into the quarterfinals where it will meet Palos Verdes in a matchup of ranked Southern Section teams from the same division. The undefeated Palos Verdes side is No. 5 in Division 1 and Santa Barbara is No. 7.
“There are so many good teams here,” said Dons head coach Todd Heil. “It’s definitely a good matchup. It’s a good test to see where we’re at.”
