VC sophomore Audrey Castillo had been hot as of late, scoring nine goals in the Pirates' last seven matches. The Pacifica High School product took it to an entirely different level Tuesday night, netting four goals to lead Ventura to an 8-1 runaway victory over visiting Cuesta at the Sportsplex. With the win, VC (6-6-4, 4-1) evens its overall record on the season and solidifies its standing in second place after one round of Western State Conference play. Yamile Mondragon had three assists and a goal for Ventura on the night.
After a relatively uneventful first 18 minutes of play, the Pirates caught fire. In the 19th minute, Mondragon hit a through pass down the middle retrieved on the run by Castillo, who beat the goalie one-on-one and slotted in the shot for a 1-0 VC advantage.
Five minutes later, Jasmin Ambriz found Castillo with a centering pass just inside the penalty box. Castillo settled the pass and hit a rocket to the upper left corner of the goal for her second score of the night.
In the 35th minute, Ambriz took a pass and raced down the left sideline toward a score that made it 3-0 for the Pirates.
Then, late in the half, Ambriz took a lead pass from Mondragon and attacked the goalie one-on-one. Ambriz's shot careened off the diving keeper and rolled into the net for a 4-0 Ventura advantage at intermission.
Early in the second half a key defensive mistake led to a breakaway goal by the Cougars, but the Pirates had a quick answer. in the 59th minute, Ambriz assisted a goal by Castillo for the hat trick, and in the 63rd minute, Mondragon cashed in Miranda Vasquez's corner kick for a 6-1 advantage.
In the 70th minute Castillo cashed in another Mondragon assist, and in the 75th, Bailey Ingersol scored off another Vasquez corner kick for the final 8-1 result.
The Pirates played an aggressive offensive game once again with 22 shots, 14 on goal. Defensively, Aracely Castro had two saves.
Ventura closes the first round of WSC play in a solid second position behind Santa Barbara. After VC visits Allan Hancock College on Friday Oct. 26, the Vaqueros will pay a visit to the Sportsplex on Tuesday Oct. 30.