The562’s high school soccer coverage for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Long Beach Poly soccer alum Kennedy Justin.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach Poly Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Former Jackrabbits Wendell “WoWo” Moe, Jr. & Tyson Ruffins.
When asked what he needed to see from his team moving forward after a scoreless draw with Millikan earlier this week, Long Beach Poly coach Carlos Casillas chuckled before offering a simple answer: “Hopefully just put some goals in the net.”
Casillas’ wish couldn’t have been granted much quicker in Poly’s next go-around against Wilson on Friday night, as the Jackrabbits put up a pair of first-half goals from junior Carlos Casillas and senior Salvador Alfaro. That cushion proved enough to hold off the Bruins in the second half, as Poly went on to earn a 2–1 victory.
“You always want to come out with passion, and to get those two goals in the first half makes that a lot better for us,” said coach Casillas. “Like I’ve said, this is the Moore League—every game is going to be competitive and it’s always about getting that first goal and giving yourself some breathing room. The fact that we finally got two, it was huge and it definitely helped.”
Those two first-half goals came in what was statistically an even match through 40 minutes of play. In fact, Wilson outshot the Jackrabbits 7–5 in the opening half, while the teams were nearly even in the fouls category and finished the half with two corner kicks apiece.
Despite the disadvantage in shots, Poly generated the cleaner chances in the first half, with both goals coming from inside the box. Junior Carlos Casillas opened the scoring with a 16th-minute goal for the Jackrabbits, his fourth in the last four games.
“He’s been on and off with injuries, but he’s been working through it and it’s paying off,” Poly coach Casillas said of the junior.
Alfaro provided an immediate spark off the bench, doubling Poly’s lead with a 28th-minute goal. Entering on the left wing, the senior capitalized on a rebound off a cross from Daniel Silva and finished to make it 2–0.
“It was important to come out and set the tone coming off the draw against Millikan, especially being here at Wilson’s home,” Alfaro said. “It was amazing to get the W.”
The Jackrabbits’ attack also benefited from a more frequent rotation Friday night, which helped them keep the pace up with fresh faces on the field. Alfaro was one of the players in that rotation and proved to be key, scoring his goal coming off the bench just 12 minutes after the Jackrabbits’ opening goal.
“Some of our key guys are still hurt coming off of injuries and our last game was a lot more physical so we decided to do a lot more of that rotation today,” Casillas said. ”We threw more bodies out there today and it worked.”
It wasn’t an easy task for Poly to hold off Wilson from there as the Bruins found far more opportunities in the second half, including a lopsided five corner kicks to none. Lio Rodriguez helped anchor that second-half attack with three straight shots to open the period, including a goal in the 48th minute to cut the Poly lead in half.
With the extra intensity that came from playing while trailing, Wilson brought added physicality, and the Bruins received back-to-back yellow cards midway through the second half that led to scoring opportunities for Poly. The Jackrabbits were unable to find a third goal but stayed calm defensively to hold on to their lead.
“We knew they were going to bring it in the second half,” Casillas said. “You gotta go for it when you’re down, which they did. We just told everyone to stay calm back, and make sure we win the 50/50 challenges. We did that except for one, but I’m proud of my boys for that.”
The Jackrabbits will have a week of rest before returning to Moore League action with a matchup against Compton next Friday, meanwhile Wilson will be at Cabrillo to start the week on Monday.
