P.K. Yonge ends decade-old boys soccer streak, clinches top seed as well

Knowing what was at stake and the importance of the soccer match Thursday, P.K. Yonge junior forward Roberto Hurtado wasn’t going to let it slip away.

It had been nearly a decade since P.K. Yonge last defeated rival Keystone Heights, a 2-1 win back on Jan. 6, 2012.

Hurtado, who leads the state in goals with 43 and 18 assists, did everything in his power to end the long losing streak against arch-rival Keystone Heights in a 3-1 District 4-3A win over the visiting Indians.

Scoreless after 40 minutes, Hurtado helped the Blue Wave take control minutes into the second half. His dish to Jonas Bish, who found the net in the left corner, gave the Blue Wave a 1-0 lead in the 45-minute mark.

A free kick by Hurtado was saved at first by keeper Carson Eatmon, but Bish was there to send the ricochet easily into the open net for a 2-0 lead in the 62 minute.

Late in the game, Hurtado finally was able to break free from the Indians physical defense and sent a shot past Eatmon into the left corner for a 3-0 lead with three minutes left.

“We wanted to win this and we were hungry and it showed tonight on the field,” Hurtado said. “I wasn’t here last year, but I heard they lost to them (Keystone) three times, including at districts. This was huge for us, this is amazing step for us and we are ready to win districts, we got this.”

Logan Spence got past the Blue Wave defense and helped the Indians avoid the shut out with a shot past keeper Jamey Bennett with 29 seconds left for the final 3-1 outcome.

Bennett survived a bevy of attacks from the Indians, but made 13 saves to keep his team in the game; while his counterpart Eatmon, saved 22 shots on goal.

Hurtado finished the match with a goal and two assists and is just four goals from tying former Indian Dean Hogg, who led the area with 47 goals last season.

The Indians (8-9-4) were full of confidence despite losing Hogg, the 2019-2020 Gainesville Sun Small School Player of the Year, before the season due to a knee injury. The Indians had won 16 of the last 18 meetings against P.K. Yonge, including two ties, one (3-3) coming Dec. 11.

P. K. Yonge head coach Jose De Leon, in his second year, wasn’t part of many of those losses having arrived from Englewood High in Jacksonville. However, he quickly learned about the rivalry and the importance of beating the Indians.

“When you lose to a rival so many times and so many years, you get used to it and then you see them as a tough and impossible challenge to tackle,” De Leon said. “It was a lot at stake, because we’re right now No. 1 in the district, and if we would have tied or lost we drop to No. 2 in the district, so we needed to win this game not only because of that but emotionally."

Three years ago, the Blue Wave were winless 0-12-5 and two years ago they won only five games, but De Leon has done a strong job getting 12 wins each of the last two seasons.

“This team has grown a lot, this team use to be a top team in the early 2000s, it’s dropped really bad in the last 10-12 years, but we're picking it up slowly,” De Leon said. “I started adding some middle schoolers here and there and we started growing and growing until we are at the place we are at right now, and that’s why it was important tonight.”

Hurtado echoed his coach.

“This is the biggest thing, biggest accomplishment this year, as a team we're all very happy and it's all really big for us,” Hurtado said.

P.K. Yonge (14-2-1) hosts The Rock on Monday for Senior Night, before concluding the regular season on the road Jan. 27 at district rival Crescent City.