"I was just able to pick my spots and I got some great passes from my teammates," said Baez, who scored with two minutes left to give Burroughs a 1-0 win at Hoover on Jan. 3. "I give them props.
"It's just a coincidence that I've done well [against Hoover]. This league is tough and you have to be ready. We focused on our positioning and Hoover gave us a good fight."
Baez staked Burroughs to a 1-0 lead when he took a picture-perfect pass from Alex Avelar-Escalante and beat Hoover goalkeeper Malek Azadegan in the ninth minute. Baez made it 2-0 as he received a crisp pass from Nolberto Alcantar and lined a shot past Azadegan in the 12th minute.
Alcantar extended Burroughs' advantage to 3-0 off a pass from Baez in the 20th minute to close out the first-half scoring.
Burroughs assistant Coach Gustavo Gomez said the Indians needed a big performance from Baez.
"He got off to that great start and we had a 3-0 lead 20 minutes in," Gomez said. "When he's on, he's on.
"We dipped a little after the first 20 minutes and we got a bit sloppy. This is a big win that we wanted to get."
Hoover cut the lead to 3-1 on a penalty kick by Sarkis Tumasyan in the 45th minute. Burroughs defender Ozzie Castro shoved Hoover's Romel Sarkisloo in the goalie box, resulting in the Tornadoes being awarded a penalty shot.
Before Hoover could regain any additional momentum, Baez and the Indians quickly gained control. Baez tipped in a pass from Jorman Herrera in the 53rd minute to make it 4-1.
Govanni Medina extended Burroughs' advantage to 5-1 off an assist from Baez in the 55th minute. Baez completed the scoring a minute later.
"Francisco is a great player and he's got a lot of club experience," Hoover Coach Kevin Cadenas said. "He brought it against us both times.
"He's humble and he works hard. This was a must win for both teams and Burroughs came out more focused and aggressive and we made some mistakes. Burroughs has a good team and their defense didn't make any mistakes. Our playoff chances took a hit, but we still have four games left and anything can happen."
Hoover and Burroughs will participate in league matches at 3:30 p.m. today. Hoover will meet first-place Crescenta Valley on the road and Burroughs will battle Muir at home.
