Russellville boys soccer beats Mae Jemison in playoff opener
By Kim West for the FCT
The scoring juggernaut also known as Russellville boys soccer continues to gain momentum after rising to No. 6 in the Class 4A-5A state poll this week and eliminating Mae Jemison, 9-0, in the first round of the state playoffs Saturday.
Led by junior striker Andy Alonso’s fourth hat trick, Golden Tigers (17-4) advanced to the second round of the playoffs, earning a May 2 showdown with No. 4 Crossville (12-5-2) at Russellville Golden Tiger Stadium. A win propels the first-year Russellville program into the third round and one step away from the Final Four state tournament at John Hunt Park in Huntsville.
“I think we’ve improved in all facets of the game. This is the first year a lot of our kids have ever played soccer on a team, so they couldn’t go anywhere but up with practice every day. That being said, there’s always something that you need to get better at,” coach Trey Stanford said.
The high-scoring Golden Tigers have turned heads statewide with their prolific offense. In 21 games, 13 players have combined to score an eye-popping 117 goals while the defense has yielded only 17 goals. Seven of those goals allowed came in three losses against Class 6A powerhouses Cullman, Florence and Albertville.
“I think strong competition gets you ready for the type of competition we’ll see in the playoffs. Yes, my guys were extremely upset when we lost all three of those games,” Stanford said. “But we learned a lot from those games, and my guys also walked away with the feeling that we are as good as those three teams if we didn’t make the mistakes that we made.”
Senior striker Marvin Betancourt continues to lead the team in scoring with 35 goals and six hat tricks, followed by Alonso with 29. Alonso has found the back of the net 13 times in the last seven matches, along with four hat tricks this season. The Golden Tigers’ attack features wo other double-digit scorers in Daniel Carranza (12 goals) and Jorge Bahena (10), plus two players with seven goals apiece in Cedrick Mojica and Samuel Bahena. Stanford also highlighted the play of his unheralded defense and midfield.
“I can name several guys that have really played a role in us being successful on the defense. Andy Alvarez and Kevin Salgado have done a great job holding down the middle and keeping our defense extremely strong,” Stanford said. “In the midfield, I have two of the best center midfielders I’ve ever been around in my life in Daniel Carranza and Cedrick Mojica. Their ball control and their footwork is some of the best I have ever seen in high school.”
Stanford isn’t putting any added pressure on his team. The Golden Tigers already have accomplished their primary goal by winning the Area 16 championship with a 7-1 conference record.
“Honestly, our goal was to win the area championship this year – anything else is extra,” he said. “We understand how tough the opponents we’re going to be playing are, so we’re going to play as hard as we can and see what happens.”
