ABERDEEN – After a slow start in the first half, Grays Harbor Gulls Football Club exploded for five goals on its way to a 6-3 win over Federal Way on Saturday at Stewart Field.

Grays Harbor (5-3-1 overall) struck first in the 23rd minute when Alex Pugadelarosa beat defenders in the foot race toward the box and finished the play with a low, hard shot to beat the keeper on the short side.

The lead slipped away quickly, however, as Federal Way got on the board twice in the 25th and 41st minute with goals off the foot of Alvaro Osornio.

The Gulls then made it a point to slow down Osornio, who completed the hat trick with a late goal after Grays Harbor had the game well in hand.

“In the last 10 minutes of the first half we were pressing up too much and we kind of got disorganized and gave up counter attacks right through the center,” Gulls fullback Izzy Fernandez said. “We regrouped in the second half and did a better job of staying more closed up, keeping our shape and dragging our wings in.”

Looking to create more offensive chemistry, Grays Harbor head coach Drew Grannemann decided to tweak the lineup a bit. Grannemann said he noticed the team was low on energy by halftime and looked to move some of the more skill players to midfield with the hopes of increasing possession.

The strategy began yielding scoring chances after the break. The Gulls scored their first goal of the second half in the 53rd minute when Juanito Lopez scored off an assist from Juan Oropeza. Lopez got the bouncing ball to settle at his feet where he beat the keeper diving to his right to tie the score 2-2.

Lopez came away with another tally in the 59th minute where he gathered a loose ball near midfield, made a run to the top and sent a shot screaming to the top right corner of the goal.

Not satisfied with the 3-2 lead, Victor Corona came away with what proved to be the game-winning goal a minute later when he capitalized on a loose ball deep in the box to give Grays Harbor a 4-2 advantage.

Grannemann said Saturday’s game against Federal Way is a testament to how much the team has grown as a unit since they dropped a match to the same opponent on May 19.

“Last time we played them we got spent and they dominated possession, so we were running back and forth trying to chase the ball,” he said. “(On Saturday) we kind of stayed home and settled in our positions and we made them run a little bit more. That’s all due to an increase in chemistry, physicality and confidence with how we possess the ball.”

While the Gulls were flying high, Federal Way was struggling to generate anything positive in the second half.

After falling behind the team looked to have its back line jump up in the play, which left them open to counter attacks. Federal Way was also forced to play with an inexperienced goalkeeper and gave the officials an earful when they felt late goals by Aaron Arias and Victor Corona should have been called offside.

Osornio said that his team should have done a better job of keeping its composure under the circumstances.

“We were missing our starting goalkeeper. The keeper that was playing for us was a field player,” he said. “When they came back to make it 3-2 we lost our heads and they just scored a bunch of goals after that.”

The victory puts the Gulls alone in third place and gives them an outside chance of catching the Kirkland Goats for the lead in the Western Washington Premier League.

Grannemann isn’t sure where his team will land in the standings, but he’s feeling good about his team’s future after picking up back-to-back wins.

“It’s progressed from week one to week nine,” he said. “I’m very happy with how we’ve progressed, being able to pass and move with all 11 on the field. We were able to control play for the majority of the game.”

Juanito Lopez, right, celebrates with Ricky Hatate after scoring his second goal of the match against Federal Way on Saturday. Grays Harbor won the match 6-3. (Hasani Grayson | The Daily World)

Aaron Arias finishes a cross for a goal late in the second half of Grays Harbor’s 6-3 win over Federal Way on Saturday. (Hasani Grayson | The Daily World)