Philomath High junior Sammy Hernandez scored four goals — three of them in the second half — as the Warriors defeated Central 8-2 in a boys soccer match on the home field Tuesday afternoon.
The game carried a little extra meaning for first-year Philomath coach Gerardo Garibay, who coached at Central before taking over the Warriors’ program. The match was unexpectedly stopped in the 75th minute after Hernandez’s fourth goal pushed the lead to six.
Gallery: PHS boys soccer vs. Central (Oct. 6, 2026)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 8-2 boys soccer victory over Central on Tuesday.
“There’s a lot of things I liked about today’s game,” Garibay said. “We looked good out there. We fixed a lot of our little things. We looked like a team today, and we played how we’ve been practicing.”
Garibay said his familiarity with the Panthers helped the Warriors prepare.
“I coached a lot of those guys for several years, so I understand their strengths, and oppositely, I understand some areas where we could take advantage,” Garibay said. “So I think we prepared well for the Central game.”
The players were aware of the storyline, Hernandez said.
“He just said they’re going to come out wanting to beat us because it’s his old school, and we came out harder, wanting to get the win for him,” Hernandez said.
Philomath struck first when freshman Skyler Wilson scored in the sixth minute after receiving the ball on a throw-in from senior Esias Sapp. Central answered in the 16th minute on a goal by junior Diego Hernandez Garibay to tie the match at 1-1.
The Warriors broke open the match with three goals in a span of about four minutes. Sammy Hernandez scored in the 26th minute on a corner kick from sophomore Oliver Demasi, and senior Jacob Hernandez made it 3-1 in the 29th minute with Demasi again picking up the assist. Junior Dreyton Nuño followed later in the 29th minute with a goal set up by Jacob Hernandez.
Central’s Damian Becerra Lopez, a junior, scored in the 39th minute to cut the Philomath lead to 4-2 at halftime.
The second half stayed scoreless until the 67th minute, when Wilson scored his second goal of the match on an assist from Sammy Hernandez. That started a flurry of four goals in nine minutes, with Sammy Hernandez scoring unassisted in the 68th and 72nd minutes before finishing off the match in the 75th minute with an assist by Nuño.
“I felt like they did great,” Sammy Hernandez said of his teammates. “Everyone was passing, doing their job, working hard.”
Hernandez credited Garibay’s emphasis on ball movement in practice.
“I mean, he’s been pushing us in practice with our passing drills, so that’s why we look way better right now with the ball on the field,” he said.
Garibay also singled out senior defender Kayden Boynton for his work at left back.
“I want to recognize Kayden today. He played really well at left back for us,” Garibay said. “He was marking his guy, he was tight, and he fixed a lot of things from the previous game.”
Hernandez, who is also playing football this fall, said the team’s focus now turns to the playoff chase in a conference he called “probably the toughest” around.
“We want to try to win every game from now on,” Hernandez said. “We’re trying to get the points that we need and try to get to the playoffs.”
Garibay said a recent tie between Cascade and Newport complicated the Warriors’ path.
“We’re winning the games that we need to win, and the boys still seem bought in, still have hope, and we definitely do,” Garibay said. “I think the Cascade-Newport tie hurt us a little bit, because now we’ve got to beat both teams. But we have a shot, and we’re going to go for it.”
Philomath (3-5-1 overall, 2-2 Oregon West) plays at 6 p.m. Thursday at Stayton. The Eagles (7-1, 3-1) had been unbeaten but lost 3-2 Tuesday at Cascade.
Philomath 8, Central 2
Tuesday, Oct. 6, at Philomath HS
Teams (Record) 1 2 F Central (3-5, 1-3) 2 0 2 Philomath (3-5-1, 2-2) 4 4 8
Note: The game was stopped in the 75th minute.
FIRST HALF—1, Philomath, Wilson (Sapp), 6th minute; 2, Central, Hernandez Garibay, 16th minute; 3, Philomath, S. Hernandez (Demasi), 26th minute; 4, Philomath, J. Hernandez (Demasi), 29th minute; 5, Philomath, Nuño (J. Hernandez), 29th minute; 6, Central, Becerra Lopez, 39th minute.
SECOND HALF—7, Philomath, Wilson (S. Hernandez), 67th minute; 8, Philomath, S. Hernandez, 68th minute; 9, Philomath, S. Hernandez, 72nd minute; 10, Philomath, S. Hernandez (Nuño), 75th minute.
