Peachtree Ridge Lions Soccer

Lion's "Break" Mustangs

Lady Lions Win 7-0

Men take late Contest 4-2

March 23, 2012: The Peachtree Ridge Lions visited Region VII foe Meadowcreek on Friday Night. Across both Varsity games, the Lions scored 10 times to the Mustangs 2, with a parade of names getting on the score sheet across the two contests.

In the men’s match, the Lion’s started the scoring early as a Lion throw-in found the head of junior Lion Jeremy Rector. His flick found Juan Herrera streaking to the back post. His sliding one-timer gave the Mustang keeper no chance and the Lion’s had the 1-0 lead with the game barely 2-minutes old. “That was a pretty play right there. It helped us get the monkey off our backs a little bit and settle in and play some soccer,” commented boys Varsity Coach Ryan Sutton. The monkey that Sutton was referring to was the early week loss Region VII rival to Collins Hill.

While the PRHS players would settle in, the Mustangs raised their intensity level. The contest, especially the first half, was physical. Questionable “no foul” calls ruled the night. The Lion’s were forced to defend repeated long balls played over the top – which eventually led to the Mustangs first goal late in the half. A deflection found the foot of a Mustang defender who played a ball to the Mustang forward. He was able to break away 1 vs. 1 on goal, and his shot found the inside of the far post to tie the game at one.

The Mustang midfield is strong, and Lion midfielders Kevin Zuluaga, Raul Diaz, Daniel Rodriquez, Ryan Fitton and Herrera had their hands full. “The battle in the middle was intense,” noted Sutton. “Our guys played well, especially the second half. We have to challenge for every ball, every 50/50 chance. We did a better job tonight supporting each other.”

The second half adjustments made by the Lions began to pay dividends when Senior Taylor Williamson played a great ball to space in front of Rector on the far left side of the field. As Williamson continued a strong run down the center of the field, Rector was able to beat his defender and see Williamson all alone at the back post. His cross was perfectly timed by Williamson whose header beat the Mustang keeper for the 2-1 lead. “When Jeremy and Taylor started working together, the game shifted quickly,” stated Lion Coach Ryan Sutton. Indeed, just five minutes later, Williamson would return the favor with a pass to Rector. With his back to goal, his onetime side foot volley beat the Mustang keeper and the Lions found themselves up 3-1.

The Mustang pressure intensified with the increased Lion lead. Joey Bittner and Lucas Raposo were doing a good job stopping the outside efforts, forcing the Mustangs to the middle of the field where further support existed from Michael Valenzuela and Grayson Guldenschuh. Their strong second half efforts were a big difference in the game.

With time running down, Rector would be the beneficiary of a mis-played ball the Mustang keeper. He was able to steal the ball and side step the keeper, sliding the ball over the goal line for the final Lion goal and the 4-1 lead. While the Mustangs would get an additional consolation goal, it was too little to late as the Lions left Mustang stadium with the 4-2 win, putting them in a tie at the top of the Region VII standings with Duluth, Collins Hill, North Gwinnett, and Mill Creek at 2-1. "The Region is going to be crazy this year!" added Coach Sutton.

The Meadowcreek girls were no match for our Lady Lions Friday night on their home field. Six different players scored for Peachtree Ridge in a game that was dominated from start to finish. Brittany Gonzales minded the net for PRHS and stopped every scoring opportunity to record the shutout.

The Lions used their full team and many girls got extended minutes of valuable playing time. The experience should serve them well come playoff time. “This game was great for team bonding,” said Lions coach Bill Holleman. “Several players were able to get in the scoring column that don’t normally have opportunities and they made the most of them. Cosette Morche got to play in the field and demonstrated some skilled moves. It was fun for everyone.”

Senior forward Alanna Dineen lead the scoring with two goals and Courtney Miller, Heather Bowman, Phoebe Palmer, Macey Raines, and Jordyn Missel had one goal apiece.

The Lions controlled the run of play from start to finish and were on the attack most of the time. The back line consistently stopped the Meadowcreek players and most of the game was played on the Lions side of the field. The Lions midfield handled the ball well and maintained possession while feeding the ball forward with timely and accurate passing.

Morche played well in the attacking space and showed she can play anywhere on the field. She had several opportunities to get her name in the scoring column but two shots went just wide and one sailed just over the top of the net. All the players and parents were cheering her on.

The Lions led 2-0 at half on goals by Missel and Bowman. Shelby Jennings took a long shot to set up Missel’s effort and the Lions kept pressure on the Meadowcreek keeper who did not do a good job of controlling the ball or clearing it out. That resulted in several break aways and unassisted goals.

The Lions broke the game open in the second half. Palmer scored unassisted after she intercepted a pass in the top third and carried it for the shot. Raines carried the ball into the middle after a nice entry pass from Graham Green and finished into the upper right of the net. Miller was set up on a beautiful placement from Dineen and didn’t miss her opportunity. Courtney then returned the favor by assisting nicely on Dineen’s first goal.

The final goal of the night was started from the midfield by Amanda Ferry who fed to Nichole Meisner who one-touched a perfect pass to a streaking Dineen on the left side. Alanna carried the ball all the way in and beat the keeper with a high, hard shot. Nichole made the play happen with her excellent field vision and leading the ball out in front at precisely the right time.

The Lions are now 3-0 in region play with crucial games coming up in the next week that may well determine playoff seeds. Come out and watch!

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