Lincoln boys’ soccer advances to Daily Pilot Cup quarterfinals with win over Killybrooke

There was no stopping Gavin Karam and Rodrigo Fabregas on Wednesday afternoon, as Corona del Mar Lincoln Elementary School romped into the fifth- and sixth-grade Gold Division quarterfinals at the Daily Pilot Cup soccer tournament.

The Leopards, the first team in the division to advance from the first round, have made it clear in their first two games that they’re contenders for the championship, and they’ll go as far as Karam and Fabregas take them.

Karam scored two goals and assisted another and Fabregas netted a goal and set up one of Karam’s finishes as Lincoln dominated Costa Mesa Killybrooke 4-1 in the Group A clash at Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex. Consider it a preview of what’s to come, in a few years at Corona del Mar High and who knows after that.

“They’re outstanding, very talented players. They’re the best players I’ve coached,” Lincoln coach Sean Roberts said. “It’s been a privilege to coach them. They work very well together, and they work well with most of the other kids on the team.

“One of the things I like about them is they have big egos, right? You can see it, but they don’t scream at the lesser-skilled players. They work with them. They want everybody to succeed, although they want to score the goals, of course, because that’s their thing. They’re goal scorers.”

Lincoln Elementary’s Rodrigo Fabregas scores a goal against Killybrooke during a boys’ fifth- and sixth-grade Gold Division pool-play match at the Daily Pilot Cup on Wednesday at Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex.

(Kevin Chang / Staff Photographer)

They’re actually central midfielders at Pateadores — they’ve played together, mostly, since they were 4, but are on different teams, based on birth year, with the storied youth club — and both possess impeccable skill and field awareness. They see things on the field that others don’t know to look for.

They tore apart Killybrooke in the first half. Both of them dribbled through masses of defenders to create opportunities and Fabregas sent through balls for Karam, playing up top, to run onto.

Karam set up Frank Duddridge’s fifth-minute opener, then finished from Fabregas’ weaving run through the Colts’ box in the 12th, and the game, for all intents was over. Fabregas picked up a ball just outside the box and split two defenders to add a third just before halftime, and Karam tallied just before the finish to answer Carlos Alcala’s 42nd-minute penalty kick for Killybrooke.

Killybrooke Elementary goalkeeper Danny Rivas, center, makes a save against Lincoln’s Gavin Karam, left, during a boys’ fifth- and sixth-grade Gold Division pool-play match at the Daily Pilot Cup on Wednesday at Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex.

(Kevin Chang / Staff Photographer)

“Obviously, we couldn’t stop them,” said Julio Calderon, who is coaching Killybrooke’s first Gold-level team in tournament history. “That was our downfall.”

Fabregas was on the field after a red card in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Kaiser, one of the tournament favorites, was rescinded. The Leopards will go into Saturday’s semifinals without Karam, who has a Development Academy game with Pateadores, but would be available for Sunday’s semifinals and final, should Lincoln get there.

The sixth-graders are best friends and huge fans of each other.

“We have amazing chemistry,” Fabregas said. “It’s really easy to play with him. He’s fast, and I know he can always get there. He controls the ball so well, and I’ve 100% trust in him, that he can get past anyone. He’s so reliable.”

Karam says he and Fabregas “play really good off each other, and we read each other. We know where we’re going to be.”

Kaiser’s strong defense and direct play out of the back limited their opportunities on Tuesday, but Karam netted an equalizer midway through the second half. Lincoln has 12 points after two days — six points are awarded for a win, three for a draw and one for each goal up to three — after losing one point against Kaiser because, Roberts said, an “overzealous parent got extremely aggressive with the referee.”

Kaiser, which has four points, meets Killybrooke in the group finale Thursday afternoon at 4:30 at Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex.

Killybrooke Elementary’s Carlos Alcala advances the ball against Lincoln during a boys’ fifth- and sixth-grade Gold Division pool-play match at the Daily Pilot Cup on Wednesday at Jack R. Hammett Sports Complex.

(Kevin Chang / Staff Photographer)

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SCOTT FRENCH is a contributor to Times Community News.