Frankfort, West Lafayette boys soccer advance in IHSAA sectionals

CRAWFORDSVILLE - Frankfort junior midfielder Eric Hernandez was admittedly heated during the first half against Twin Lakes in the IHSAA sectional boys soccer Class 2A first round matchup at Crawfordsville High School.

Hernandez had been pumped a couple of times while trying to win possessions in the air and drew a yellow card in the 22nd minute.

But during halftime, Hernandez took a breathe and regained his composure. And once he calmed down, the Hot Dogs started to find their rhythm.

"After the yellow card I decided to stay calm and it was going to require myself for us to score," Hernandez said.

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Hernandez possessed the ball through pressure and opened opportunities for his teammates.

Sophomore Sebastian Mora scored on a penalty kick in the 59th minute after being fouled hard attempting to score and Hernandez added another penalty kick goal after a hand ball was called to help the Hot Dogs win 3-1 and advance to the sectional semifinals.

"We were playing good through balls, being aggressive and just gave it 100%," Mora said.

Sophomore forward Andres Cuadra Eugarrios added the put away third goal in the 69th minute.

"I couldn't really understand the coach but I just decided to go out there and play hard," Eugarrios said.

Frankfort (5-8-1) received an added boost in net from goal keeper Sebestian Aguilar Espinosa. Aguilar Espinosa punched a would be goal attempt near the goal line up and over the net in the 58th minute while score stood at 0-0.

Aguilar Espinosa would finish with four saves to help seal the victory.

"I'm a natural athlete," Espinosa said.

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Twin Lakes (4-9-2) got a 71st minute goal from senior Ricardo Amaya. The group led by head coach Cory Egolf returns 26 players from this season.

"As long as we keep working together as a team and keep building that relationship with each other as a team we'll definitely be a threat next season," Egolf said.

West Lafayette 9, North Montgomery 0: Senior forward Jayden Blank scored five goals for West Lafayette (11-4-1) to eliminate North Montgomery (2-13). Frankfort and West Lafayette will face off Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. in the 2A sectional semifinals.

Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at ehanson@jconline.com , on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at ethan_a_hanson .

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Frankfort, West Lafayette boys soccer advance in IHSAA sectionals