GARDEN GROVE — Los Amigos’ boys’ soccer team is on a mission to secure league and CIF Southern Section titles, after missing out on both last season. Armed with wisdom gleaned from the battles that did not go its way, and sharpening the tools required when the games that matter arrive next month, the boys had victory in its sights.
The Lobos have won seven of their first nine outings, completing the 2025 portion of their schedule Thursday afternoon with a 4-0 non-league romp at Santiago that provided the means to build valuable roster depth ahead of their Coast League opener on Jan. 7 against Saddleback.
It was over by halftime — credit two early beauties from Eduardo “Lalo” Reyes and a Jason Vieyra-won-and-converted penalty kick just before the break — and head coach Jesus Razo and his staff used the second half largely for evaluation and experience, getting 21 players onto the field. They know what’s ahead.
Los Amigos midfielder Eduardo Reyes (10) advances the ball up the pitch against Santiago on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)
Los Amigos (7-1-1) finished third with a mostly young group in a tight Coast League race last year, six of eight games in a 4-3-1 campaign decided by no more than a goal. They needed penalties, as top seed, to reach the Division 5 semifinals, where the road ended with a 1-0 defeat to champion Compton Dominguez.
Five significant contributors are back: defenders Julian Rivera and Erick Rojas, midfielder Juan Rojas, and forwards Jose Vargas — missing Thursday with a hamstring strain — and Jafet Ponce, the latter two with seven goals apiece this season. Razo says this group, which is “more balanced and more mature,” has a higher ceiling.
Last year’s journey, Rivera says, has “built belief.”
Los Amigos defender Jason Vieyra (4) scores off of a penalty kick against Santiago on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)
“We’re like, ‘Oh, I did it last year, why can I not do it this year?’” said Rivera, a defender who netted a late fourth goal. “We went on a good run, lost in a really tight game, but we learned. We could do it again, and we could win it. We could win everything this year.”
The Lobos were dominant in their second one-sided victory this year over Santiago (3-6-4), in command of midfield throughout (largely through Juan Rojas and Michael Bahena), creating nearly a dozen good chances, and outshooting their longtime Garden Grove League rival, 19-6 (12-3 on frame). Their unbeaten streak reached eight since a 2-1, season-opening loss to Sunset League power Fountain Valley, a run punctuated by last week’s championship triumph at Troy’s Warrior Invitational.
Los Amigos was ahead in the fourth minute, after Reyes weaved through a half-dozen defenders into the box after an Erick Rojas takeaway, and it was 2-0 in the 20th minute with a clinical finish from Erick Higuera’s low cross.
Santiago’s Isreal Gomez (60) and Los Amigos’ Erick Higuera (24) jump for the ball on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)
“I didn’t see any options [on the first], so I just said I’m going to take it,” Reyes said. “I’m in front of the goal [on the second]. Anything that’s inside the box, I just hit it and pray it goes in.”
Said Rivera: “Lalo is magic, but he has to know it. He has to believe it. Give him the belief and things will happen.”
Vieyra made it 3-0 in the 37th minute, converting from the spot after Cavaliers defender Angel Rodriguez took him down in the box, and Ponce nearly netted a fourth, and likely would have with a lob, midway through the second half. Rivera’s strike, inside the left post, came from Brayan Martinez’s feed.
Los Amigos’ Brayan Martinez (20) dribbles the ball under pressure from Santiago’s Bryan Marroquin (25) on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)
The Coast League figures to be tight again, with Grove League champion Savanna and longtime powerhouse Saddleback joining the Lobos, defending champion Magnolia, and Anaheim, which reached the Division 3 title game.
Reyes is confident.
“I’m going to be honest,” he said. “We can beat every team in the league. If we play our game, we’re going to win. I guarantee it.”
Los Amigos’ Jafet Ponce (9) holds off a Santiago defender on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)
Razo knows it won’t be so easy.
“We found out real quick [last year] that there is no one single [favorite],” he said. “Everyone can beat everybody. We can’t take anyone lightly. We’re going to treat every game like a playoff game.
“Last year helped us into that grind, it really helped us develop. The overall picture is to win league. And then once we’re in CIF, overall picture is win the CIF title. But [right now] it’s game by game. And we’ll go from there.”
Los Amigos’ Emmanuel Garcia (14) stops the ball on the sideline in an attempt to shake Santiago’s Alexander Higadera (12) on Thursday in a nonleague boys’ soccer match.
(Eric Licas)