It’s been quite the season for the Eastside boys soccer team through 10 games. But, the 10-0 Eagles are not looking to get complacent any time soon.

Through those 10 games, the Eagles have enjoyed a veteran-led team that is spearheaded by first-year head coach Jabari Bennett.

With a 10-0 record after a 9-7-1 finish a year ago, some of the Eagles shared what’s so different about this year’s squad.

“Our chemistry has really improved a lot,” said Eagles goalkeeper Tucker Consuegra. “It is still the same players, but for us it has just been a little bit better coaching, more understanding of the game, playing the way we want to and our finishing overall is a lot better as well.”

Bennett served as an assistant coach as well as the head coach for Eastside’s JV boys team, which led to him being very familiar with the current Eagles varsity team.

For senior Thomas Hill, Bennett’s efforts start with the expectations he implemented early.

“I would just emphasize the standards he has brought in,” Hill said. “He has been the JV coach here for a number of years, before I was here. He has always been a role model in the community and he came in here knowing what the program has been through the last few years and had high standards. We set goals, and we have just been working hard toward those goals every single day.”

Another aspect of this year’s Eagles team is the ability to step up when the moments are the biggest, according to senior Ben Weaver.

“Just showing up when it matters,” Weaver said. “Our practices everyday aren’t always the greatest, and sometimes during the warmups the focus isn't there. I don't know what it is, but when that whistle goes off everyone seems to know what the goal is and what to do to achieve it.”

When it comes to the tactics and results on the pitch, the Eagles have seemed to do almost everything well.

In 10 games, Eastside has outscored its opponents 51-10. With an offensive attack led by players such as Hill, Alexis Vieyra and Jonathan Gomez, the scoring opportunities have been plentiful for Eastside this season.

According to Hill, it is a mix of two things.

“Honestly it is the decision making,” Hill said. “Decision making and we just have some really good individuals out here. I think a little bit of both, we have individuals with skill and individuals with high-IQ and decision making. It plays into making the right pass, shooting at the right time, finding the right ball into space.”

In Eastside’s most recent match, the team produced a quality performance in its 5-0 win over Madison County.

The win over the Raiders is one the team is looking to build off of.

“A lot of what you saw against Madison County,” Weaver said. “We were moving the ball. That was the first game this season, possession-wise, where we controlled the game. We kept the game in their half the majority of the time. Usually we are a ‘hit on the counter’ type of team — we absorb pressure and use the speed and size up top to get our goals. On Friday night against Madison County, we controlled it.”

With all the success that has been there for the attackers, Eastside defenders have been just as consistent.

Led by multiple seniors, the Eagles’ back-half has seen many matches together.

“A big part of it is that the back four we have had all season is the same back four we had last season and majority of what we had our sophomore year,” Weaver said. “We have played together so much that it gets to the point where it clicks. You don't have too many moments of poor communication, it just goes because we have played with each other so long and we know the trust.”

Along with the strong defense is the efforts of Consuegra in goal.

Consuegra has  tallied three clean sheets so far this season, and has had five matches where he only conceded one goal.

The junior keeper shared how he cannot give himself any credit without first mentioning his defenders in front of him.

“I have put in a lot more work but I have to give credit to my defense as well, they have definitely stepped up in a big way this year,” Consuegra said. “Most of our backline is seniors so they know it's their last year, they are giving it everything they got. I got to hand a lot of it to them. I get a lot of credit for the things I do, but that's all them.”

Eastside has four more matches left on their regular season slate, but the Eagles’ next matchup this Friday is perhaps their biggest so far.

The Eagles will take on North Oconee at home on Friday, March 28. Eastside and North Oconee sit side-by-side atop the Region 8-AAAA standings with matching 4-0 records, as each team has almost guaranteed themselves a spot in the state playoffs.

However, with region supremacy on the line, the importance of Friday’s game was not ignored by the Eagles’ starters.

“If we show up and know that we need to win, it is just going to take 80 minutes of being in the right headspace,” Weaver said. “If you look at East Forsyth, that game we grew relaxed when we went up 2-0 and we thought it was over from there. They made a game out of it and made it really tough for us. It is just having that mentality of foot on the gas the whole time.”

Despite the two teams sharing 4-0 record in region play, the non-region slate for both teams have gone differently.

The Titans are 6-5 overall, but perhaps the biggest discrepancy between the two comes in the goals scored.

Eastside has scored a total of 55 goals this season to North Oconee’s 13 — all through the same amount of games.

Consuegra shared how the team’s confidence will be the biggest factor when they take on the Titans at Sharp Stadium.

“Mentality, for sure,” Consuegra said. “We have the talent, we have the skills, we have the strength, finishing, everything.It is just our mentality. We can't go in there thinking, ‘Oh, this team is good, it might be close.’ We have to go in there, ‘Oh, we are the best team in this league, let’s go win this game 10-0, no questions.’”