With just two games to go before the postseason, Rodrigo Aldana is hitting his stride.

Aldana, a forward, has scored seven goals for the Patterson High boys soccer team, added 10 assists in seven games and played a major role in the team’s seven-game unbeaten streak.

Most recently, he set up five of Patterson’s goals and scored another in a two-game stretch that saw the Tigers rout Western Athletic Conference foes Orestimba and Central Catholic.

Patterson upended visiting Orestimba 6-0 on Oct. 20 and bested host Central Catholic 6-1 on Oct. 22.

The victories helped keep Patterson (15-5-3 overall) atop the WAC with a league record of 10-1-1.

“I think we’ve been playing really well lately, on and off the ball,” Aldana said. “The team hasn’t lost in a while, and it’s going well.”

Aldana endured a tough start to the year, suffering a knee injury before the kickoff of the 2009 campaign. While Patterson got off to a relatively slow start (5-4-2 in its first 11 games), Aldana struggled to find the form that saw him net 54 goals a season ago.

But while his personal numbers might not have been great in the season’s opening weeks, Aldana is happy with the team’s recent success and is confident in his return to form.

“I am starting to feel better about my game, and I think that now I’m back, the team is doing well,” Aldana said. “And, sure, I didn’t score a lot (of goals) during the first half of the season, but the second half I have felt a lot better.”

In the win over Orestimba (5-7-1, 3-5-0 WAC), Patterson’s Gustavo Molina scored a pair of goals, and teammates Danny Virgen, Christian Arteaga, Rafael Sotello and Margarito Elenes added a goal each.

Luis Torres was again solid between the posts, notching his seventh shutout of the season.

“The guys are playing great team soccer right now,” Patterson coach Greg Hartsell said. “Once you score a couple of goals, you feel more confident in your dribbling, your playing, your passing and your moving. I hope we can continue to play at this level.”

Heriberto Hernandez booted two goals against Central Catholic (1-16-2, 0-11-1). Aldana, Virgen, Polo Rangel and Jose Cuevas also tallied a goal each in the triumph.

“We’ve been flowing lately,” Aldana said. “The guys stuck by my side, and the coaches stuck by my side — I can’t complain. I have good guys around me, and that shows that we’re a good team.”