Aldao's record-breaking day nets Bruins big road win

HILLSBORO, Kan. -- Inaki Aldao scored the game's first four goals in under 20 minutes en route to setting a new program record for goals in a game, with five, to lead the Bellevue University men's soccer team to a 6-0 triumph over host Tabor College on Tuesday evening at Joel H. Wiens Stadium.

Records:

Bellevue: 4-0-0
Tabor: 0-1-0

Recap: BU 6, Tabor 0

Bellevue struck quickly, finding the back of the net in the second minute. Gabriel Gaiotto sent a cross in from the far side that Inaki Aldao flicked into the back of the net for his third strike of the season and the early 1-0 advantage.

The Bruins wasted no time doubling their lead, finding the back of the net again in the seventh minute. After a well-designed set piece was turned away, BU won a corner. Toby Millward sent the ball to the far side of the 6-yard box and Andy Wilkinson headed it back to the center of the goal that Aldao headed in for his second goal of the game.

Aldao completed his hat trick with a strike from outside the 18 that tucked neatly inside the post to make it 3-0 in the 16^th minute. Oumar Sissoko had the assist.

For the fourth time in the opening 20 minutes, Aldao found the back of the net. This time he buried a header off a Millward free kick.

Alex Cuenca broke the run of goals by Aldao in the 22^nd minute hitting a rolling pass from Sissoko to make it 5-0 to the visitors.

While BU did not add to their lead before halftime, the Bruins did continue to dominate possession and chances as they took their 5-0 lead into the break

Out of halftime, Aldao wasted no time setting a new high-water mark for single-game goal scoring. Millward sent in a cross off a corner kick that Aldao headed with loft over the keeper for his program-record fifth goal of the game.

Bellevue saw the game out from there, finishing with a 17-2 advantage in shots. The Bruins recorded all eight corner kicks in the game.

Neither Harry Wray nor Jared Robles were tasked with making a save in the shutout.

Cameron Chadd (2) and Jesus Rondon (4) combined to make six saves for the Bluejays.

Man of the Match:

Inaki Aldao -- Set a school single-game record with five goals, eclipsing the previous mark of four set by Rob Smith against Hastings College on Sept. 18, 2016.

Coach Mark Heath-Preston:

"The game was over in the first 20 minutes after Inaki Aldao's hat trick and Alex Cuenca's goal. Every player that went on worked hard and didn't let off. We have done really well to keep this pace up over a busy period. We now have some rest before a big game against Midland."

Up Next:

Bellevue has a week-long break before they play host to Midland University on Wednesday, Sept. 23 with kick-off set for 7:30 p.m.

Notes:

• With his five goals tonight, Inaki Aldao now ranks 5^th on the BU all-time goal-scoring list with 32 career strikes.
• With the BU victory, head coach Mark Heath-Preston now has 50 career wins at the helm of the Bruins. In doing so, he becomes the fourth Bruin head coach to reach the 50-win plateau (Bill Koeppen, Aaron Champenoy, Matt Briggs).
• Bellevue opens the season with 4-straight wins for the first time since 2010 and the fourth time overall ('04, '05, '10).