WGOL
Listen Live
Local Weather
Russellville, AL
37°

Betancourt leads Golden Tiger rout of Madison Academy

Russellville pride was on display both in the stands and on the field Thursday night when the seventh-ranked Golden Tigers (16-3-0, 7-0) took on the Madison Academy Mustangs (8-7-1) at Golden Tiger Stadium.

On Russellville City Schools’ 2nd Annual Golden Tiger Pride Night, the boys’ soccer team showed out in front a large crowd of Black and Gold supporters, dispatching the Mustangs 7-1.

Russellville started off sluggishly but used five second-half goals to finish the match strong and complete the rout of Madison Academy.

“We played well at times and at times we played kind of wild,“ said Russellville head coach Trey Stanford. “We started off kind of slow, but Madison Academy isn’t a bad team. This is the type of team that we want to play against and beat, and we did that.”

Junior midfielder Andy Alonso opened up the scoring for the Golden Tigers in the first half.

In the 18th minute, Russellville counter attacked on a ball kicked across midfield from deep in its own territory. Alonso gained possession just outside the penalty area and, skillfully slipping around a few defenders, drew the Mustang keeper out far enough to give himself an open shot. Alonso took it and placed the ball in the back of the net for his 26th goal of the year.

Russellville followed up with another goal 14 minutes later, this one by senior Kevin Salgado.

After earning a corner, midfielder Cedrick Mojica crossed the ball in from the right side. Mojica’s ball in whizzed to the far post where Salgado, one of the tallest players on the pitch, put his head to it. From his position on the left side, Salgado guided the ball to the right side of the goal, beating the Madison Academy keeper, who attempted to come out to defend.

Going into halftime, Stanford’s squad had a 2-0 lead, but the first year boss was not satisfied. According to Stanford, Russellville’s first half performance was sedated, due in part to an issue his team has been working to improve all season: Their passing.

“We made some dumb passes, to be honest with you,” Stanford said. “I think when we get to a point where we’re controlling the ball for a long time, we get lackadaisical and lose our focus a little bit.”

Those mental mistakes lead to turnovers, which lead to goals for the opponent. Stanford says that is something his team will continue to work on as they prepare for their final regular season game and the postseason.

“You can’t have mental or defensive lapses against great teams in the playoffs,” he said. “If you make even the smallest mistake against a great time like Randolph or somebody, they’ll score on you and that can get you beat. That’s something we’ll keep working on and trying to get better at in practice.”

Despite their lackluster start, Russellville's second half was anything but uninspired. Led by top striker Marvin Betancourt, the Golden Tigers quickly increased their lead and put the match out of reach.

Betancourt, according to Stanford was battling an illness all game, but that did not stop the senior from scoring three consecutive goals to start the second half.

The first of Betancourt’s trio of goals came in the 41st minute when he caught up to a well placed through ball. Baiting the goalkeeper, Betancourt waited for him to leave his line before slicing the ball into the bottom left corner of the goal.

“Marvin is a special finisher, and I tell him that all the time,” Stanford said. “He is a one-of-a-kind finisher and he’s got the talent and the skill to match anyone in the country.”

Betancourt’s second goal came just two minutes later. This time, the striker flashed his speed.

After Russellville’s defense cleared the ball out from near its own net, Betancourt pursued and gained possession near midfield. At that moment, with two defenders to his left and to his right, he pushed the ball down the middle of the field and allowed his quickness to do the rest. Betancourt left the two Mustang defenders trailing and, one-on-one with the goalkeeper, easily slipped his shot into the net.

“On that goal, nobody even touched him. He can fly, man,” Stanford said. “He’s on the track team and you saw why right there.”

Betancourt waited 20 more minutes but picked up his third and final goal of the evening. Once again, using his speed and agility, Betancourt avoided defenders long enough to find an open shot and whip the ball past the goalkeeper.

Betancourt’s 63rd minute goal gave him his sixth hat trick of the season and a team-leading 35 goals.

“Being sick like he was and still able to score a hat trick, that’s incredible,” Stanford said. “Marvin is great at any sport he plays. He runs track and we had him on the football team. He’s just an amazing athlete and we’re blessed to have him. I hate that we’re going to lose him because that’s a lot of goals to replace (next season).”

Up 5-nil in the last 15 minutes of the match, Stanford began subbing in for some of his starters, but that did not deter the Golden Tigers from continuing to shoot the ball.

In the 66th minute, Russellville drew a foul from just outside the penalty area. Freshman Samuel Bahena was sent to take the free kick and, with his left foot, scorched the ball past the frozen Madison Academy keeper.

One minute later, up 6-0, senior Jorge Bahena got in on the action. On a counter attack, Betancourt attacked down the right side of the field, pulling defenders with him. Once close enough to draw the goalie’s attention, Betancourt crossed the ball in to Bahena. The striker finished easily, stroking the ball into the middle of the net for his 10th goal of the season.

Madison Academy, beating Russellville goalkeeper Jesus Betancourt on a penalty kick, was able to erase the zero in the 77th minute, but it was too little too late for the Mustangs to get back in to the game.

Russellville’s win now leaves the Golden Tigers with just one more match in the regular season. That game will take place at home on Monday, April 24, against area rival East Limestone. Should the Indians prevail over Danville on Saturday, Monday’s match at Golden Tiger Stadium will determine the area champion.

“We have a chance to win the area championship in our first year as a program. That’s pretty incredible,” Stanford said. “But East Limestone is no slouch. They played us tough last time. It’ll be a physical game and they will play hard. We have to be ready.”

If the Golden Tigers defeat the Indians (or lose by two goals or fewer) on Monday, they will claim home field advantage in the first round of the AHSAA playoffs.

“If we win we’ll get to host the first round and maybe the second round, too,” Stanford said. “That’s a big deal, and it would be huge for us.”

The Russellville girls’ soccer match against No. 5 Pope John Paul II preceded the boys’ match. The Lady Falcons defeated the Lady Golden Tigers 6-0. The RHS girls will play their final game of the 2017 season against East Limestone on Monday.

comments powered by Disqus
Copyright © 2024 Franklin Free Press All Rights Reserved.
Designed and Hosted by RiverBender.com
113 Washington Ave. NW | Russellville, AL 35653 | 256-332-0255