Boys soccer: Ricardo Camacho’s hat trick leads Joliet Central past Joliet Catholic

JOLIET – It’s been two years since Joliet Central went winless in boys soccer.

It was a gut-wrenching experience for all of the players involved, but last year saw tremendous improvement for the Steelmen. New coach Ulises Ornelas instilled hope in the program as they improved to six wins in 2023.

There’s still growth happening, but the Steelmen (2-3) earned their second win of the season Monday night, and they did it in dominant fashion. That’s something they couldn’t say once two years ago.

Junior forward Ricardo Camacho picked up a brace in the first half and made it a hat trick in the second half as he led Joliet Central to a 6-0 victory over Joliet Catholic Academy.

“I think all us coaches know that the beginning of the season is to figure out where we’re at and get to know our boys pretty good,” Ornelas said. “Even though there’s been a few rough games we’ve learned from them. I think today the boys demonstrated a good game. It was a good win.”

It’s been a long journey for the Steelmen, and this season hasn’t been without its tough moments. Their three losses came by a combined score of 14-1. However, the two victories have come by a combined margin of 10-1 as the offense is improving. It should also be pointed out that the Steelmen’s defense fended off a multitude of chances by the Hilltoppers in the second half Monday.

Of course, it also helps when you have a player who can score three goals in a match.

“The defense is the most important part of a team, and we’re really working with the boys to be in communication at all times,” Ornelas said. “I think today we really improved from the last game. [Camacho] has been showing what he can do since his freshman year, that he can compete. One thing to know about him is he’s always ready to compete against anyone, which is something you always want to see.”

It was a scoreless draw for the first 19 minutes before Camacho scored his first goal. He broke through the backline and put it in the net to put the Steelmen up 1-0, as he celebrated with his fingers pointed toward the sky.

Just three minutes later, Camacho got his second goal, slipping through the defense and making his presence felt. The rest of the half was scoreless as the Steelmen had a 2-0 edge at halftime.

JCA created a few more opportunities in the second half, but the Steelmen’s line held strong. In the 62nd minute, Camacho finally earned his hat trick and had Joliet Central humming.

Five minutes went by before Marlon Montes decided he wouldn’t let Camacho have all the fun. He chipped in a goal with 13 minutes remaining to go up 4-0. Juan Mendoza scored with 1:16 left, and Gael Rojas added the sixth goal with 50 seconds remaining on the clock.

As for the Hilltoppers, head coach Tom Cranmer felt the final scoreline didn’t reflect the effort JCA gave or the team it is.

“I thought the backline played pretty well to be honest,” he said. “[Camacho] is really good, and it’s hard to contain someone like that. Those first two goals in the first half made us chase the game a little bit after that. Our numbers kind of caught up with us a little bit in the end. The message was really that we were right there with them. They just capitalized and we didn’t.”

Joliet Central plays at Plainfield South on Wednesday, while JCA hosts Marian Catholic.