OAKWOOD -- After a sluggish start for Class AAAA third-ranked Johnson against 10th-ranked North Hall in a key Area-8-AAAA match Friday night, Fabian Abarca decided it was time to take matters into his own hands -- or feet.
The Knights' junior midfielder took an errant Trojans pass, serpentined through five defenders on a 50-yard run, and then unleashed a hard blast from just inside the box past a diving keeper to give them the lead and spark what would finish as a 4-0 victory at Billy Ellis Memorial Stadium.
Both teams counter-punched in the opening minutes but a wet ball and slick field made for some tentative offensive play as neither team wanted to give up an early breakaway.
North Hall would get the first two good scoring chances. The first came in the second minute when a Johnson defender fell down on the slick track but the shot sailed wide left. The Trojans next opportunity came two minutes later after another Johnson defender fell down but this time the shot sailed just wide right.
Abaca said that's when they decided to pick up the pace. Abarca was able to use his speed and guile to beat Trojans' keeper Chris Bellows with 28:50 left in the first half on the first goal and the rest of the Knights followed.
"It was a slow start but I think that kind of got us going," Abarca said. "I just tried to use my speed and ball-handling to get some space. It was a lot like we do in practice where we try and create space. I got some and then was able to get a good look."
Johnson kept up the pressure forcing its second corner of the half three minutes later. The corner try started with a header and finished with Fernando Carrillo finding the bouncing loose ball and sliding it past Bellows for a 2-0 lead with 25:51 left.
North Hall never recovered. The Trojans managed no corners in the first half and just two for the game but only one more real legitimate scoring chance after the opening minutes. The Knights limited North Hall's ability to generate any long runs and used its speed on the wings to cut off any potential crosses.
"Our defense was outstanding all night," Johnson coach Brian Shirley said. "We tried to take away their long passes and runs and we were able to do that. That was a big part of the game."
It was a key win for Johnson (7-1, 3-0 Area 8-AAAA) which pushed its win streak to seven. The Knights also continued an interesting trend: they are 7-0 when they score. It also allowed them to keep pace with Buford and Chestatee at the top of the standings.
"This was a huge win for us. Fabian's goal really got us going at a time when we needed something," Shirley said.
Johnson added another wild goal with 20:11 left in the second half when Jaime Rosales gathered the ball after a pinball scramble and blasted a 20-yard strike past Bellows for a 3-0 lead.
The Trojans next decent scoring chance came on a 40-yard direct kick with 7 minutes left but the shot sailed high over the goal. Moments later the Knights put any comeback thoughts to rest when Bellows misplayed a high bouncing pass which found its way to the back of net with 5:07 left for a 4-0 lead.
It this kind of night for North Hall (3-3, 2-2): with just over three minutes left the Trojans finally were able to get a run on the Johnson defense. They were able to generate one shot and then blasted the deflection past the Johnson keeper. It was waved off for offsides. Also, the Trojans had not allowed more than one goal in any of their previous four matches until Friday.
JOHNSON GIRLS 2
NORTH HALL 0
The Lady Knights snapped a two-game winless streak with a key Area 8-AAAA win at home Friday night.
Johnson (2-4-1, 2-1 Area 8-AAAA) broke a scoreless tie late in the first half when Emely Avitia blasted a high-arcing midfield shot that got just the right bounce to narrowly clear the North Hall keeper's outstretched arms for a goal and 1-0 lead with 8:07 left in the first half.
The Lady Knights defense was able to keep North Hall off the board until Kelsey Dumanowsky took a pass from Taylor Bell and found the back of the net with 16:51 left in the game for a 2-0 lead.
North Hall (2-3-1, 1-3) continued its struggles on offense. The Lady Trojans have scored just one goal in their last three matches and are just 0-3-1 in their last four matches overall.
The win kept Johnson within one game of first place and tied for third in the area standings.
Sunday
January 26th, 2025
11:38PM
