Aragon Gets 300 Career Wins Against Lazers
(Ben Polk got his first hat trick of the season Thursday, helping defeat Onondaga 5-2).
(Yu Sasaki scored his lone goal of the game in the 64th minute, giving Herkimer a 4-1 lead).
(Jeff Castenada scored the final goal of the game in the 82nd minute).
HERKIMER, NY – The Herkimer Generals men’s soccer program became a little more prestigious Thursday afternoon, seeing Head Coach Pepe Aragon collect his 300th win after a 5-1 victory over Onondaga Community College at Wehrum Stadium.
Herkimer (2-0, 0-0) has been led by Aragon for the last 17 season, accumulating seven national championships during that time. With a revolving door of players coming in-and-out each season because of the two-year institution Herkimer College offers, it makes it even more impressive since Aragon cannot rely on talent staying for 4-5 years.
Aragon’s prowess was on display Thursday, seeing first-year player’s Ben Polk (Banbury, UK), Yu Sasaki (Funabashi, Japan) and Jeff Castaneda (Franklin Square, NY) score in regulation. Polk had three goals, Sasaki had one and Castaneda had one.
Polk’s second goal in the 49th minute gave Herkimer their second lead after the Lazers tied it in the 30th minute. The team didn’t look back from there, scoring three more goal in the final 40 minutes of regulation. Polk scored his third goal on another assist from Rodrigo Guerra (Newburgh, NY) in the 56th, then Sasaki scored unassisted in the 64th and Castaneda made it 5-1 in the 82nd on a free kick.
In total on Thursday, the Generals led for 71 minutes, which has been common during Aragon’s tenure, racking up a 300-27-14 record, good enough for an 88 percent winning percentage, one of the best Herkimer College has ever seen. The only thing he has not accomplished as a soccer coach to date is winning four consecutive championship, something he encountered his first year as a head coach for Herkimer after Perry Nizzi won in 1994, 1995 and 1996. Aragon finished second in the nation in 1997. He’ll now get a second chance in 2014 to see if he can add another accolade to his impressive career.
The Generals next game is on Saturday, September 6th. They’ll travel to Jamestown, NY to take on the Jayhakws who are on a two game win streak. Play is scheduled to start at 3 p.m., where Aragon will again look to add to his impressive career stats.
-Giorgio Varlaro