East Hamilton coach John Millard yells to his team.East Hamilton's soccer team stormed out of the gate and delivered a dominant 4-0 win over White County in their Region 3-AAA semifinal match Tuesday night.
The Hurricanes looked to blow away the visiting Warriors, scoring two goals within the first seven minutes. Jose Orellana struck first, and fellow junior Cooper Loftin followed suit.
"We came out aggressive early, and that was the difference," said East Hamilton coach John Millard. "We got a little careless in the middle of the first half, but we got the late goal, which is obviously nice."
After their two early goals, East Hamilton had trouble getting another ball into net, as both teams struggled to hold possession with around 20 minutes to go in the first half. The Hurricanes settled in, though, to send a barrage of shots toward the Warriors' goal, totaling seven in the half.
"It's a matter of bringing guys in and reminding them what they need to do," Millard said of getting his team back on track.
In the closing seconds, senior Jack Fletcher put the ball in the lower left corner of the goal, giving East Hamilton a 3-0 lead.
The second half got off to a familiar start with Orellana striking again in the opening minutes. East Hamilton continued to hammer the ball at the opposing goal, firing off five more shots in the half.
The Hurricanes limited the Warriors to two shots total in the shutout.
"Jose played extremely well and created a lot opportunities," Millard said. "And our backs -- we defended very well."
East Hamilton's Taylor Vanzant got one save in the win, and White County keeper Tommy Odom had five.
"Obviously they're a good team with a lot of tradition, and it showed," said Warriors coach Doug Dodson. "They put us back on our heels in the first few minutes and did a good job possessing the ball and limiting our chances."
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com.