By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
With each passing victory, the Porter Cowboys are moving closer to the outright District 32-5A boys soccer title.
The first-place Cowboys defeated Pace 5-0 on Friday at Porter to remain unbeaten in 32-5A with an 11-0 record and 32 points. They expect to clinch the outright district championship in their next game at 10 a.m. Monday at Donna High.
“We’re playing with a lot of confidence,” said Porter senior center midfielder Reyes Saldivar, who tallied his team’s initial goal midway through the first half Friday. “To score the first goal is a beautiful feeling. It gives the team confidence and makes the team want to do more.”
The Cowboys scored twice in the first half and added three more tallies during the final 40 minutes to win handily against the Vikings (6-5, 17 points). Prior to Friday, the last time the two teams faced each other was during the first round of district on Feb. 6 at Pace, and that time Porter came away with a 4-0 victory.
“We’ve practically clinched the district title, which Porter hasn’t won in quite some time, possibly since 2004,” Cowboys coach Jose Espitia said. “Our players are saying the district title is not their (ultimate) goal for the season. Their goal is higher than that, so we’re just going to continue to work hard so we can accomplish more.”
Midway through the first half Friday, Saldivar fired a strong shot from about 20 yards out that went off the right post and into the goal for a 1-0 lead. Barely two minutes later it was 2-0 after teammate Alexis Anzures’ bicycle kick from close range found the mark.
The Cowboys added three goals within the final 15 minutes of the match to make it 5-0.
During the 65th minute, Porter’s David Pacheco rifled in a shot on a direct kick just outside the 18-yard box on the right side for a 3-0 advantage.
In the closing minutes, Saldivar passed the ball to reserve sophomore forward Omar Estrada, who converted both times from the left side during the 81st and 86th minutes.
Saldivar said Friday’s cool weather didn’t affect his team.
“When you win, the cold weather doesn’t bother you,” he said.