Mendota senior Johan Cortez said he felt the Trojans haven’t been playing to their potential the last few games.

But coming into Thursday’s Three Rivers Conference Tournament championship, the Trojans were motivated.

No. 1-seeded Mendota scored four goals in the first half and cruised to a 5-0 victory over No. 2 Kewanee to win the inaugural TRC tournament in Mendota.

“I think it means a lot, especially today since we were coming off two or three games where we didn’t play the best,” Cortez said. “We were playing kind of lazy and not giving 100% effort. But coming into today, we knew we had to give everything we had to win this.

“I think we played a lot better today. We communicated a lot better. Having the whole team into the game instead of just a few guys really helped us, because when we work together as a group, it’s so much easier to play.”

Mendota coach Nick Myer said the idea for tournament came about at the all-conference meeting last season.

“Everybody agreed it would be cool to have something midseason with the conference teams,” Myers said. “We got it rolling, drew it up, everybody agreed on it, and we just went from there.”

The Trojans put the finishing touches on a dominant conference season.

Mendota was not scored on in five conference regular-season games and did not allow a goal in two tournament games. In all, the Trojans outscored league opponents 50-0.

“It’s very cool,” Myers said about winning the tournament. “We always like to get as many trophies as we can. Hopefully, this is something we can start a streak on and win multiple years in a row. We were able to get through the conference schedule and tournament without being scored on, so that’s always nice.”

The Trojans struck early Thursday when Danny Garcia lofted the ball into the box, where Isaac Diaz chased it down and poked it over the goalkeeper’s head with 36:32 left in the first half.

Cesar Casas scored on a scramble off a corner kick with 29:04 left in the first half and scored his second goal with 8:53 left in then opening half.

Diaz scored again off a rebound with 2:37 left in the first half for a 4-0 lead at the break.

“I thought the first half we came out really well,” Myers said. “We’ve run into a lot of teams lately that packed the back on us. It’s expected. We know we’re going to see that quite a bit most games, so we’ve been working on that. We’ve been starting fairly slow, and I think a lot of it has to do with we get a little frustrated with how many defenders they have in the back.

“I thought tonight we came out with more energy and a lot more direct, forward passing, trying not to let them get set in the back. I was happy with the 4-0 lead at halftime.”

In the second half, Cortez headed in a corner kick from Alex Beetz with 8:20 left.

“I thought we played a little sluggish in the second half, a little too content with where the score was,” Myers said. “I would have liked to have seen us put the foot on the gas a little bit more in the second half, but overall we’ve done a great job getting up two or three goals and knowing how to hold the lead and not do anything silly to let the other team back in the game.”

The Mendota defense did not allow a shot on goal until the second half. The Boilermakers only managed two shots on frame.

“We’ve come a long way defensively,” Myers said. “We lost three out of four starters from last year, and our first three games this year the back was kind of a mess. But they’ve settled in.

“Alex Beetz and Luis Ramirez at centerback have done fantastic. They’ve made it really challenging for other teams to even get a shot off. We got Angel Orozco back tonight, which helped. Hugo Falcon, Abel Nanez and Cole Kleckner have all stepped up and played really well. We have six or seven defenders we can rotate, which has really helped. Ramorio (Palacios) and Sebastian (Carlos) do a fantastic job at center defensive mid, sometimes not even letting them get to our back four.

“Their communication has gotten better every game, and they’re getting more confident.”

The Trojans have three regular-season games left before they begin the postseason with hopes of returning to the Class 1A state tournament.

Mendota is the No. 1 seed in sub-sectional A of the Indian Creek Sectional.

“I think we’ve definitely learned a lot since the beginning of the season,” Cortez said. “With only a few games left, I think we’re heading in the right direction. I think we have the potential to have a really good postseason.”

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Mendota's Isaac Diaz kicks the ball past the Kewanee keeper during the Three Rivers Tournament on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025 at Mendota High School. (Scott Anderson)