Atwater line change sparks rout of Merced

Many high school soccer teams don’t use eight substitutions over the course of an 80-minute match.

Even fewer are making those changes with eight different players, and next to no one is emptying their bench in one fell swoop.

Atwater coach Jimmy Brewer shucked conventional wisdom aside after an uninspiring opening 10 minutes from his starting unit on Tuesday afternoon. Brewer made wholesale changes, subbing in eight fresh bodies in hope of eliciting a little life from his team.

The move worked to perfection as the second unit produced three goals over a 13-minute span. Luis Lopez served as one of the main catalysts, scoring twice during the flurry en route to a hat trick as the Falcons cruised to a 5-0 victory over Merced at Falcon Field.

“The game plan and point of emphasis leading into this game was to come out and play with the same intensity and energy that we played them with last time,” Brewer said. “Six-zero games don’t just come out of nowhere. We got it because of the pressure we put on them and our execution.

“We didn’t get the effort we were expecting, so we made a quick change. There’s not a lot of difference in terms of skill between our first or second unit, so it was nice to see those guys seize that opportunity and really up our level of play.”

Even with Atwater’s mass sub, Merced (8-4-5, 3-3-2 Central California Conference) had the better run of the game’s opening 12 minutes.

That changed in the 13th minute on a failed clearance by the Bears. Leo Araujo won the ball just shy of midfield and quickly played it back to Lopez in the attacking third. Merced goalkeeper Saad Sohail got caught off of his line and Lopez chipped a half volley over him and into the goal.

It was all Atwater (16-0-3, 6-0-2) after that.

Lopez doubled his tally four minutes later, receiving an Omar Duran pass on the left wing and cutting to the top of the Merced 18-yard-box. The Bears defense didn’t close him out and Lopez beat Sohail (five saves) to the far post.

The Falcons went up 3-0 in the 26th minute when Zeb Stevens found a little space on the left wing. Sohail denied Stevens’ shot, but Brandon Alvarez followed the play and slotted home the rebound.

“It doesn’t matter what your skill set is, you still have to go out and perform,” Lopez said. “We’re a team where a lot of guys can go out and play well, so everybody is itching to play when you get out there.

“Sometimes we come in and can be a bit lazy, but today everybody was working hard.”

Merced, which has now produced one goal in its last four outings, never threatened to get back into it after the break. The Bears only forced two saves from Atwater goalkeeper Andrew Ulloa, both of which were easy catches.

Lopez completed his hat trick in the 56th minute on the Falcons’ nicest bit of attacking play in the game. Eduardo Cebrero started the attack down the left wing, before sliding a through ball into the path of Christian Fuentes. Fuentes took the ball to the touchline and slid a pass across the Bears’ six-yard box for an easy Lopez finish.

Jesus Garcia headed in a corner kick to finish the scoring in the 76th minute.

This story was originally published October 6, 2015 at 7:58 PM with the headline "Atwater line change sparks rout of Merced."