Peachtree Ridge Lions Soccer

LION’S DEFEAT CENTENNIAL IN FIRST OF TWO GAMES AT BROOKWOOD INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT

February 24, 2011:  In what was the prettiest soccer of the season so far by the Lions, possession and control ruled the evening as the Varsity Boys beat a talented Centennial Knights squad Thursday at Brookwood High School 1-0.  The Varsity boys remain undefeated on the young season at 3-0, while turning in their third shut-out of the campaign.

The Lion’s passing game was superb on this night, as the Lion Midfielders dictated the flow of the match from the outset.  “Our guys came to play this evening,” a delighted Coach Sutton said.  “Centennial is a very good team, as are each of the teams in this tournament.  We possessed the ball and worked extremely hard on every 50/50 chance.  Tonight we played good soccer – but we have a lot of work to do.  We are right back at it on Saturday against Brookwood, and we all know they are strong year-in and year-out.” 

The effort was part of the annual Brookwood Invitational Soccer Tournament, which this year features four ranked teams from Georgia’s Top Ten 5-A schools, including:  Collins Hill #1, Brookwood #3, Peachtree Ridge #7, and Centennial #10. 

Peachtree Ridge did its damage early as Junior Midfielder Juan Herrera took a perfect throw-in from J.T. Taplin and ripped a brilliant header past the Centennial keeper at the 3:00 minute mark of the first half.  The goal was Herrara’s first of the season, and the assist was also Taplins’s first.  While the damage was done early, the hard work and determination by the Lions continued throughout the game.

“This was a real team effort,” said Coach Sutton, “at every position we worked hard and worked together.  We had excellent additional chances to score, strong midfield play, and defensively we were there for each other.”

Lion midfielders Herrera, Michael Valenzuela, Andres Rodriquez, and Josh Mahram kept pressure on the Knights throughout the contest working hard both ways on and off the ball.

When the Knights would get deep enough to challenge the defense, Taplin, Grayson Guldenschuh, Derek Bryant, and Justin Sedam stood tall, and backed each other up smartly.  While the Knights managed seven shots during the contest, none of them seriously tested senior keeper Mitch Kupstas who recorded his second shut-out of the season.

Up top, Chris Cook and Jeremy Rector worked extremely hard pressuring the Knight defense and creating multiple opportunities to score.    

The Lions play #3 Brookwood on Saturday, February 26, at 6:00pm at Brookwood Stadium.

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