IRVINE, Calif. – Make it two wins in two outings for the Vanguard men's soccer team in Golden State Athletic Conference play, as VU beat Hope International on Saturday 6-2.  Robert Ronco and Sidney Dina each scored a brace of goals and the team outshot the Royals 21-16 on the day.  The win moves Vanguard to 6-1-4 overall and 2-0 in GSAC play, while HIU falls to 9-2-1, 1-1.
 
What Happened?  Edwin Monterrosa had to make the first save of the contest just five minutes in but the Blue and Gold quickly assumed an attacking role from there.  Jared Subarsky fired the first Vanguard shot away in the sixth minute but just missed wide.  Austin Tubbs made HIU goalie Milton Herrera come up with a stop in the 14th minute on a mid-range effort and the second VU corner kick of the game allowed Cooper Clark to send a shot towards the net, only for it to miss a little wide.
 
The good form of the visiting Lions paid off soon thereafter, as an HIU defender made a sloppy pass which was picked off by Tubbs.  He played it to Stewart Alvayero, who reflected the ball immediately to Ronco, who drove in all alone done the left wing.  He held off the charging defender from behind and his shot beat the diving keeper to put Vanguard ahead 1-0 in the 16th minute. 
 
Monterrosa made two saves over the next five minutes to keep the Royals in check and defense turned to offense once again for the Blue and Gold.  The Lions got the ball forward and Kade Mikkelsen played a nice give-and-go pass with Aidan Doherty, who evaded a defender in the box and lifted his shot into the top corner of the net to put the Lions up 2-0 in the 24th minute.
 
The game did not slow but only Monterrosa would face shots on target for a short period, as the VU keeper made two dandy saves as the first half came to a close to preserve the lead.  The Royals outshot the Blue and Gold in the first half 9-8 and VU had a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.
 
The sides returned to the field for the second half and the Royals got the first scoring opportunity off a foul just outside the box two minutes into the new period.  Luis Lira went for goal off the free kick and placed it perfectly into the top corner to cut the lead to 2-1.  Despite the Royal goal, VU did not get rattled and started to push forward again.  VU was able to get Alvayero involved offensively over the next 10, as he picked up two shots, one blocked and one saved.  The two sides continued to slug things out but a dramatic shift tilted the battle towards VU, as the Royals were given a red card in the 66th minute.
 
Now a man up, the Lions countered brilliantly to increase the lead.  Doherty picked off a pass and got tripped from behind as he crashed the box, with the Lions getting a free kick straight away from goal, 20 yards out. Alvayero sent a shot under the wall and Herrera made the stop, but Dina swept in to clean up the rebound into the back of the net to put the Lions up 3-1 in the 66th minute.  VU then made a poor challenge in their own box, giving HIU a free kick, with Colm Cohen scoring to make it 3-2 with 20 minutes to play.
 
However, the Lions would put the game to rest over the next 12 minutes with three goals.  A corner kick from Alvayero went straight to the head of Ronco, who snapped it into the net to make it 4-2 in the 75th minute.  Six minutes later, Dina played a ball wide to Donald Kiernan, who then whipped the ball back to the head of Dina, who pocketed his second goal of the match to make it 5-2.  The final dagger came just two minutes later, as Dina brought the ball through the middle of the field and gave it to Kiernan on the right wing.  He took the ball back towards the middle of the pitch and on his left foot just outside the box, fired a beautiful shot into the top-right corner of the net to make it 6-2.  Monterrosa made two saves in the final two minutes and the Lions collected a statement 6-2 victory on the road.
 
VU had an 11-9 edge in shots on goal for the match and a 7-4 lead in corner kicks.  Alvayero led all players with seven shots and three of those were on target. Ronco had three shots and Doherty, Dina, and Kiernan each had two.  Monterrosa stopped seven shots on the day. 
 
Why is it Important?  That is now four wins in a row over HIU for the men's team and the most goals scored against HIU since an 8-3 victory on October 3, 2015.  Vanguard now has all six points from two conference games and is tied on points behind Menlo and The Master's, who are tied at seven points (2-0-1).  Jessup is tied with VU with six points on a 2-1 record in GSAC play.
 
What was Said?  "We came out firing on all cylinders.  We created some great chances and scored some awesome goals. These guys are starting to believe offensively, and they are playing very well. We have some veterans that are stepping up and being great leaders. Proud of the hard work these guys are putting in," relayed Head Coach Jesus Miramontes after the win.
 
What's Next?  The Lions will have a week to prepare for a rematch against TMU, though this match will count towards the GSAC standings.  The Mustangs will arrive in Costa Mesa next Saturday, October 14, for a 10:30 a.m. match.