One player scoring three goals is not a common occurrence in high school soccer games. But when the boys varsity soccer team played the Crystal Lake Central Tigers on Monday afternoon, not one, but two Huntley players pulled a hat trick.

The Raiders (11-3-1) cruised to an easy 7-0 victory over the Tigers, who hold the bottom spot in the Fox Division with an overall record of 0-13.

Five of the goals were scored in the first half, three of which were by senior forward Lucas Baker for the first hat trick of the game. The other two goals of the half were scored by sophomore forward Manuel Menjivar.

“We were just faster and more technical,” said head coach Kris Grabner. “We were a little hungrier for the ball.”

Coming out after the half, Huntley took the opportunity of a comfortable lead to work on spreading the field, possessing the ball, and improving on attacking the goal, said Grabner. Their second half resulted in another goal for both Baker and Menjivar, completing Menjivar’s hat trick.

“I was more focused, and our team was too,” said Baker. “We warmed up more focused. [We were] quiet on the bus.”

Even when the Raiders were not scoring, they dominated possession for the duration of the game. They kept persistent pressure on the goal with constant shots being fired at Crystal Lake’s keeper, including an attempted bicycle kick by Baker.

The solid win gives the team confidence for when they will return to Valley Division opponents, starting with Jacobs tomorrow and Cary-Grove on Thursday.

“It helped us with our combinations so we’re going to be more focused and prepared for tomorrow,” said Baker.

“We’d love to compete for a conference championship and a regional championship, so we really need to win out,” said Grabner. “The next two games are critical for that and to get us ready for the regional.”