LION'S VICTORIOUS
Lady Lions Deal Habersham a 4-0 Defeat
Men Take the Late Contest 6-1
April 17, 2012: With storms seemingly circling Lion Stadium, the Peachtree Ridge Lions and Habersham Raiders were rain delayed but able to dodge a bullet to get both the men’s and women’s matches in on Tuesday night. Georgia’s eighth ranked Lady Lions took care of business by defeating the visiting Habersham Central Raiders 4-0. In the nightcap, it was Habersham’s eighth ranked men’s team losing to the currently unranked Lions by the score of 6-1.
With a first half that was played after a torrential down pour which included a weather delay of about 1 hour, the action on the field could be described cautious at best. The Lions would see multiple opportunities go wanting as the connection between playmakers was just a bit off because of the rain soaked field.
However in the second half, the flood gates would open again, only this time it wasn’t the weather. The relentless pressure the Lion’s were placing on the Raider defense led to multiple opportunities around the Habersham goal. The Lion’s broke through when Lion Keeper Brittany Gonzalez’s long clearance was flicked by Lion Forward Phoebe Palmer right into the stride of Freshman Jordyn Missel. Missel went hard to goal and beat the Habersham keeper low to her right side for the 1-0 lead. “Brittany played a great game tonight, and that clearance was about a 50-yard punt,” stated Lion Coach Bill Holleman. “We needed that play to get us rolling, it was big.” The Lion’s second goal was started when a backtracking Macey Raines stole the ball from the Habersham midfield. Raines turned and played a 20-yard deadly accurate pass to feet of Palmer, whose back was to goal. Palmer’s brilliant turn quickly put her one on one with the Habersham defender, who she juked her way around. With the defender on her back, Palmer was able to direct her shot to the far side of the goal and the Lion’s found themselves with a 2-0 lead. That’s when the Kayla Thomas show came to town! The Lion’s strong right defender played a beautiful cross into the box that found the foot of Senior Emily Edmond. Edmond one time’d the ball into the back of the net for the Lion’s third tally of the night. Just minutes later, Thomas got her dream job, as she was moved to forward for the first time this year. Within 2 minutes she had a great opportunity that the Habersham keeper somehow found a way to keep out of the net. Not to be deterred, Thomas would steal an errant Habersham pass and play a great ball to slanting Lion Forward Courtney Miller. Miller’s accuracy was deadly as she unleashed a shot from the top of the box that Habersham’s keeper would not have a chance at, ending the scoring at 4-0.
Great work was turned in by Natasha Campbell, Nicole Misener, Katie Fitton, Amanda Ferry, and Heather Bowman throughout the match. The Lion Defense was superb, anchored by Ashley Balmforth, Graham Green, Esther Cano, and Thomas.
In the later game, the Lion’s offense came to life as the Lion’s possessed the ball with a purpose. Peachtree Ridge quickly put the game out of the reach of the highly regarded Raiders who just a few weeks earlier tied the state’s number one AAAAA team, the Centennial Knights, by the score of 2-2.
“Tonight we did all the things a playoff bound team has to do. We combined well, defended well, but most of all we controlled the flow of the game. Possession without offense is meaningless, and over the past few weeks the guys have begun to work together to not only posses the ball, but to always be thinking offensively. We are a much better team than we were just a few weeks ago,” noted Lion’s Men’s Coach Ryan Sutton.
The Lion’s would get on the score sheet early when junior Jeremy Rector’s strong run down the right side of the field ended with a fine cross into the box to the foot of senior forward Juan Herrera. Herrera’s one timer was true, and the Lion’s were off to the races. Just a short while later, Herrera was at it again when senior defender Kevin Zuluaga’s corner kick bounded freely in the box. Herrera corralled the loose ball and crammed it into the side of the net for the 2-0 lead. Later in the half Herrera’s brilliant ball to space behind the Raider defense but in front of Rector led to the Lion’s third goal. Rector side stepped the charging goalie and slotted the ball into the net and the Lion’s led 3-0. “Juan was very aggressive tonight,” stated Sutton after contest, “he pressured well all night and was in the right spot when he needed to be. He had several quality chances, and set up several others. He is getting hot at just the right time – his senior year, and the playoffs are right around the corner.”
The Lion’s fourth goal of the game came in the second half when Lion freshman midfielder Ryan Fitton stole a Raider pass and hit a left footed “seeing eye” low shot that found the far corner of the net. The goal was the first of what will surely be many more for the freshman during his career. Later in the second half, Rector made a strong run down the left side of the field and hit a shot that the Habersham keeper somehow got a hand on. Sophomore Evan Pantels was in the right place following the play and scooped up the loose rebound and calmly found the back of the net with his left foot for his first goal of the campaign. Pantels goal was well deserved as his strong work rate throughout the match on the outside of the field thwarted many Habersham attacks. “We had a very strong defensive effort tonight; let’s not lose sight of that. Michael Valenzuela, Grayson Guldenschuh, Lucas Raposo, Joey Bittner, Ryan Breon, Raul Diaz and Kevin Zuluaga all had excellent games. Their ability to turn away the Habersham pressure led to many of the offensive opportunities we had in the game,” an appreciative Sutton said. The Lion’s put their sixth and final goal of the contest on the board when freshman Cesar Adrianzen played a brilliant ball to the top of the 18 from the left hand corner. His pass found Jordan Davis trailing the play. Davis took his shot in stride and found the far corner of the net for his first goal of the season.
Next up, the Lion’s are at home for their final game of the regular season on Tuesday, April 24th, when they take on the Lambert Longhorns at Lion Stadium. The game is senior night for the Lions, where a total of 14 seniors will be recognized for their efforts on the field and in the classroom during their high school careers. Ceremonies will be held after the lady’s game but before the men’s contest. There will be lots of excitement with extra surprises for the fans throughout the matches.
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