Soccer: Johnson boys, Gainesville girls win as rivals split battle

GAINESVILLE -- Johnson boys soccer coach Brian Shirley has not been allowed much time to learn about his 2015 squad.

But what he saw on Friday gave him plenty of hope for the rest of the campaign.

Following an enforced two-week, winter weather layoff, Shirley's Knights showed both skill and determination to fight back for a 4-3 overtime win over arch-rival Gainesville at City Park.

Fabian Abarca capped a stellar outing, scoring his third and final goal of the contest in the first half of overtime, as a young Johnson squad survived the type of emotional and physical roller-coaster that so often marks showdowns against the Red Elephants.

"They showed how resilient this group is, and they showed a lot of heart tonight," Shirley said after watching his team take a 2-0 lead, only to watch that advantage evaporate behind three straight Gainesville strikes.

Yet Abarca would not let the Red Elephants pull away, scoring the tying goal in the second half before burying the match with his final strike after teammate Fernando Carillo won possession in Gainesville's defensive third and played the striker into space.

"In our last game -- back on February 13th against Habersham Central -- it just wasn't his night, but you expect him to rise to the challenge after a game like that, and he certainly did that tonight," Shirley said of Abarca -- leading scorer on last year's Class AAAA runner-up squad. "We talked about playing him higher and having him keep more pressure on the defense, and he did that tonight."

Carillo struck first, while Abarca was also on target early, as the Knights (2-1) stormed to a 2-0 lead -- thanks also in large part to the play of Bryant Anaya and Rigo Campo, who helped control midfield and put the Red Elephants (1-2) on their heels.

Gainesville showed plenty of heart of its own, however, as Diego Porras, Cesar Salcedo and Erick Bonilla took turns pegging Johnson back. The Red Elephants knotted the score at 2-2 before halftime and then jumped in front early in the second half as Bonilla rose to head home perfectly.

"That was an outstanding goal; there wasn't anything we could really do about it," Shirley said. "We kind of settled after that early lead. But our guys regrouped and started winning the midfield back and then really turned it on when we needed."

Abarca produced a stellar strike of his own, scoring off a free kick to knot the score at 3-3 and send the contest into overtime, where he settled the contest -- providing a young team with what Shirley hopes will be a big step in the right direction.

"We had three seniors out there tonight and that's it; we had five freshmen play and two started," Shirley said. "Gainesville is a quality team, and this is a big game every year. I hope our guys feel like that if they can keep improving they can do some big things as the region season approaches.

"We still have a lot to correct. We scored four but we also let in three. But we can take a lot of confidence out of winning a game like this."

Johnson will play host to West Hall in another highly-anticipated non-region contest on Tuesday at Billy Ellis Memorial Stadium.

Gainesville will look to bounce back against Lumpkin County on Tuesday in Gainesville.


GAINESVILLE GIRLS 6,
JOHNSON 0

The Lady Red Elephants pounced for a 4-0 halftime lead, scoring three times inside the opening 13 minutes to stamp their authority on the game at City Park.

Alyssa Turner provided much of the firepower, bagging three goals, two in the first half. Jazmin Penado and Margaret Carpenter also scored in the early blitz, while Caroline Nabb rounded out the scoring.

LIz Fischer also provided two assists, while Kate Bush added one assist for the Lady Red Elephants (3-0).

Alondra Wedding produced four saves in goal to preserve the shutout.

"We played really well, especially after a long layoff," Gainesville coach Mark Wade said. "We got off to a fast start, and we've been working on doing that in practice so I was pleased. This was a good win for us against a good opponent."

The Lady Knights (0-2), who are blooding a number of young players -- three freshmen played for Johnson during the game -- are continuing to feel their way into the campaign.

"We've got a lot of growing to do," Lady Knights coach Phil Higgins said. "I like that we have a lot of aggressive players, but we've got to work hard and find an identity by the time the region season starts (March 6)."

Johnson will look to rebound agains West on Tuesday at Billy Ellis Memorial Stadium.

Gainesville, meanwhile, will play host to Lumpkin County on Tuesday in Gainesville.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2015/2/285732