The Westmont men’s soccer team gave coach Dave Wolf and his wife Jill a gift for their 23rd wedding anniversary: a 5-0 Golden State Athletic Conference season-opening win over William Jessup on Saturday.
The Warriors drew a penalty kick early in the match and Wilton Quintero converted to start the onslaught.
“The start of the game was a huge help for us,” said Westmont assistant coach Johnny Whallon. “Austin Lack got around the corner and did a good job of staying up on the first point of contact. He then got by the goalie and was fouled.”
William Jessup goalkeeper Zach Kammerer was issued a yellow card and Westmont was awarded a penalty kick.
The second goal did not materialize until the 39th minute.
“There was a lull to our playing for quite a while after the first goal,” noted Whallon. “It was nice to have the second goal to give us a little bit of breathing room.”
Cody Howen made it 2-0.
“Blake played a beautiful ball across,” said Whallon. “Cody found himself in a good place and was able to put it home.
In the 66th minute, Jonathan Yeeles corralled a loose ball in the box and slotted a pass toward the far post. Rodrigo Diaz-Valdes charged the goal and redirected Yeeles’ pass into the net.
The Warriors added their fourth goal in the 73rd minute. A shot by Howen from 14 yards out rebounded off the keeper. Sebastian Kent was there and quickly tapped the ball into an empty net.
Two minutes later, Trent Shaw passed the ball to Quintero in the center of the field. Quintero sent the ball forward to Diaz-Valdes who was charging the net. Diaz-Valdes fired past the keeper to record the game’s final score.
“Rodrigo did an excellent job in the second half,” noted Whallon. “He was in flow and was effective with his touches. Cody has stepped up the last couple of games. He has started to be a very dangerous option for us. In the second half, he exemplified leading the team on the field.”
