By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer
The Porter Cowboys showed why they are a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs.
Alexis Armendariz recorded a hat trick during the second half as the Cowboys opened up the throttle in the final 40 minutes to cruise to a 7-1 victory over the Laredo Cigarroa Toros in an area-round game Thursday at Brownsville Sports Park.
When Enrique Soto corralled a pass 12 yards from the Toros’ goal and had time to place a line drive past the right side of Cigarroa goalkeeper Jesus Cruz, the Cowboys seemed to have set the tone early.
With 33:46 still remaining in the first half, Porter’s 1-0 lead looked as though it would grow rapidly. The remainder of the half featured a lopsided possession battle in favor of the Cowboys, but they squandered scoring opportunities and went into intermission with one goal in a tie game.
“The first half we told the kids, ‘If we have opportunities in the first few minutes, we have to take advantage of it,’ and we didn’t,” Porter coach Jose Espitia said. “We had clear opportunities, and we just couldn’t capitalize. We told the kids, ‘The difference right now is we look tired. If we get opportunities like (we had in the first half) again, we’ve got to capitalize. (Cigarroa) is going to gain more confidence and the game is going to be tougher.’
“The second half looked like the way Porter has been playing.”
That half turned out exactly how Espitia hoped. Armendariz reignited the Cowboys’ offense when he buried a bicycle kick in the back of the Toros’ goal after fewer than three minutes had elapsed.
Less than one minute later, David Pacheco converted a penalty kick with a low line drive to the right of Cruz, who dove left.
The way Porter responded after halftime was Espitia’s biggest takeaway from the game.
“(Cigarroa was) being very physical, so we had to adapt,” he said. “The referee was allowing a lot of physical play. I think we did better in the second half, and the score reflects that.”
Porter continued to pour on the offense, and Cigarroa failed to find an answer. Several additional minutes of sustained pressure by the Cowboys resulted in another goal by Armendariz on Reyes Saldivar’s crossing pass.
Armendariz tallied his final goal and Porter’s fifth on a low penalty kick that beat Cruz, who this time guessed correctly but failed to reach the ball.
With 9:14 remaining in the game, Ricardo Vidal drilled home a header for the Cowboys’ sixth goal. Vidal again scored with 1:56 left to complete Porter’s rout.
“Our first half was good,” Cigarroa coach Jose Castillo said. “Our second half, when they hit us with that second (goal) and we got the penalty, it got really out of control. We have a young team and I had trouble keeping them under control, they kind of lost it there a little bit.”
The Cowboys advance to the regional quarterfinal round to play against District 32-5A and crosstown rival Pace. The Vikings defeated Corpus Christi Moody 3-1 days after upsetting Valley View in the bi-district round. The time, date and location of the game has yet to be determined.
“It’s a Brownsvilleteam,” Espitia said. “They know how to play. They know soccer. We’ve played (Pace) twice already, but it’s going to be totally different. There’s a lot on the line, and we expect a very strong team. They’re motivated. They defeated Valley View, so we’re going to have to take them seriously.”
Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.