Back-to-back goals seal win for Trojans

Despite losing two-time Class 5A state finals MVP Erick Guadron to graduation and head coach Cory Sturdivant to Alma, Hot Springs proved Tuesday night that it was still a force to be reckoned with as the Trojans rolled to a 2-0 victory over crosstown rival Lakeside at Austin Field.

The Trojans (3-2, 1-0 5A/6A-6) scored two goals 28 seconds apart in the second half to kick off their conference season with a win.

“It was typical Lakeside-Hot Springs,” said Trojan head coach Geoffrey Hedrick. “Rank or place doesn’t matter. It’s always a struggle every single time.”

Rams goalkeeper Anthony Herrera had his hands full early as Hot Springs took control of the field, sending shots toward the junior within the first few minutes. Lakeside (4-1-1, 0-1) was able to keep its defense up in the first half, keeping the Trojans to 16 shots in the first half, three of which required Herrera

to make the save.

The Rams were unable to find their way into the net, but they were able to keep on target, as 55.6 percent of their shots in the half, 5 of 9, were on goal. Hot Springs had more opportunities and were slightly more accurate with 56.3 percent, 9 of 16, on target.

Senior striker Philip Gayle had a strong shot on goal with about 1:30 remaining in the first half that hit the left side of the net. Sophomore striker Grant Viscardis was able to squeeze off another shot before the horn, but his shot was knocked free leaving the score knotted at 0-0 at the break.

“I thought, defensively, we played well the first half,” said Lakeside head coach Craig Moses. “That’s one of the things I told them, ‘We can’t make mistakes in the back,’ and we kind of made a couple mistakes second half. When they scored that one, we kind of went down, and we let them get that second one.

“I thought my kids played hard. Hot Springs is a good team. We played hard. We were trying to sneak one in there and hope we could play some defense on them. They are a heck of a team. All we can do is try to build back up and get them at their place now.”

The Rams improved their passing in the second half, finding holes to break through to move the ball upfield, but the Trojans were able to steal the ball just 10 minutes into the second half, setting up junior midfielder Josue Hernandez for a shot, but he drove the ball into the left post.

Just three minutes later, another Trojan steal put junior midfielder Jack Selig in charge as he found the back of the net to put Hot Springs on top, 1-0.

Gayle kicked the ball backwards on the ensuing kickoff, and the Trojans quickly dismantled Lakeside’s defense as Hernandez hammered the ball past goalkeeper Devin Nieto, who dove for the ball too late.

After not subbing at all in the first half, the Rams quickly pulled many of their starters, and the Trojans allowed some of their reserves to take the field, relaxing some of the pressure.

The Trojans finished with 17 shots on goal out of 27, 63 percent, with goalkeeper Johnathan Altamirano making eight saves on the night for Hot Springs.

Lakeside had just 16 shots, six of which were on goal for 37.5 percent efficiency. Nieto grabbed eight saves in the second half.

The Trojans lost two major contributors over the weekend in the Northwest Arkansas Spring Classic in Bentonville.

“We are down to my third-string midfield right now due to the injuries in the Northwest Arkansas tournament,” Hedrick said. “We made some adjustments, and they played really well. I was happy.”

Hot Springs hosts the El Dorado Wildcats (3-0-2, 1-0) tonight, and Lakeside will travel to Pearcy to face Lake Hamilton (1-2, 0-1).

* The Trojans went 2-1 over the weekend in the Northwest Arkansas Spring Classic in Bentonville, taking wins over Bentonville West and Clarksville before falling to Conway in the finals.

Hot Springs took a 2-0 win over the Wolverines in its first game of the weekend as both goalie Derrick Chambers and forward Juan Aquino earned MVP honors. Aquino scored the first goal for the Trojans, and Hernandez put in the second.

Aquino was the MVP of the second game as well as the Trojans squeezed past the Panthers in overtime. With the score tied at 0-0 after regulation, it came down to a shootout. Hot Springs made five of their shots with Clarksville making three thanks to a save by Chambers to secure the win.

The Wampus Cats proved to be too much for the Trojans as they rolled to a 2-0 victory in the finals of the tournament. Selig was named the MVP for the Trojans in the match.