STERLING — Rochelle senior Jessee Infante and his teammates were frustrated with how their conference battle against Geneseo ended this past Thursday. But Infante and the Hubs entered this week refocused, and after cruising over Plano on Monday, the boys keep the ball rolling in their varsity soccer game at Sterling on Tuesday.

The Golden Warriors have given Rochelle trouble over the past several years, but the Hubs broke through when they took Sterling down in the IHSA Class 2A Regional last season. The ball appears to be in Rochelle’s control now, as the Hubs led Sterling in the first half on Tuesday before shutting the Golden Warriors out in the second half to win 5-1.

“It’s a big morale booster for us because they’re a big name in our conference,” Infante said. “We were all mad when the Geneseo game ended because we wanted to win, but we carried that fire into our next game… The Geneseo game made us open our eyes and it helped us realize that being selfish doesn’t win games. I’m actually happy that we tied because it opened our eyes and we’re aware of what we need to do to win games.”

Sterling scored first with a goal off a corner kick in the sixth minute, but Rochelle responded soon after when Infante tied the game at 1-1 in the eighth minute off an assist by sophomore Brayan Orozco. Orozco then took a pass from Infante and scored Rochelle's second goal to give the Hubs the advantage in the 16th minute.

Leading 2-1 at halftime, Orozco set up Infante for his second goal of the game in the 51st minute, and junior Austin Brown assisted Orozco’s second goal in the 56th minute. Orozco, who already has 11 goals and nine assists this season, has made a big impact on the varsity team alongside his freshman brother Josue Orozco, who has 12 goals and four assists.

“We communicate and we try not to make any errors,” Brayan said. “Josue and I have played with each other for a long time and we know how to play with each other. The older players help me by telling me what I’m doing wrong and where I can improve. We want to improve, communicate and win as many games as we can.”

Brown tacked on an insurance goal late in the second half courtesy of Infante’s second assist of the game. Rochelle (9-0-1, 3-0-1 NIB-12 West) has completed its first round of conference games, but the Hubs will continue their busy week against Yorkville at home on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

“We’re feeling pretty confident and we’re looking forward to the rest of our games,” Infante said. “We’re playing well as a team.”