Wednesday, May 5, 2004

Three Fayette teams in AAAAA Elite Eight

The second round of games for the local soccer teams in the AAAAA state playoffs were much more competitive than the games in the first round. Fayette County, McIntosh and Starr’s Mill picked up wins but the games were close, and in Fayette’s case it took two overtimes and a round of penalty kicks to get a winner.

There are eight teams remaining in the AAAAA playoffs; three from Fayette County and one, Newnan, from Coweta. The chances for local representation in the final four and championship game are very good.

Fayette County (16-3-1) defeated Warner Robins 3-2 Monday. The Tigers trailed 2-0 early in the second half but Nasar Onyeku scored 30 seconds after Warner Robins’ second goal to cut into their lead. He tied the game with eight minutes remaining to force overtime and then scored on a penalty kick after two scoreless overtime periods. Goalkeeper Jeff Cooley made two key stops in the penalty kick round and also scored on a kick himself. Bryan Collier also scored on a penalty kick for the Tigers and Josh Partington knocked in the winner.

Starr’s Mill hosted Houston County Monday and won 3-1. The Panthers fell behind after Houston County headed the ball in early in the first half. Though Starr’s Mill had put most of the pressure on the Bears and had taken more shots, they appeared frustrated by a swarming defense. Starr’s Mill missed two great scoring opportunites soon after the Houston County goal and Wes Kent got a yellow card for arguing with an official over whether a ball had crossed the goal line.

The Panthers finally broke through with seven minutes remaining in the first half when Justin Davis found the back of the net after receiving a rebound from a direct kick. The Panthers put on tons of pressure in the second half and had several more near misses. With 18 minutes left, Trey Maughan was taken down in the box and a penalty kick was awarded to Starr’s Mill. Chip Rutland scored off the kick to give the Panthers the lead. Maughan scored four minutes later on an assist from Brian Smith for Starr’s Mill’s final goal. Kyle Nowicki picked up a yellow card with two minutes remaining.

McIntosh (17-2-1) got a 3-2 win over Glynn Academy Monday and will now get their first home game of the playoffs on Friday against Kennesaw Mountain. Glynn Academy was undefeated before Monday’s game.

Though times have yet to be determined for Friday’s games, McIntosh will host Kennesaw Mountain, Fayette County will host Brookwood and Starr’s Mill will play at Parkview. Kennesaw Mountain is 15-2-1 and their last loss came March 12 to sixth-ranked Walton, 3-1. They avenged a loss to Duluth with a 1-0 win in the first round of the state playoffs and then defeated Evans 4-1. Brookwood, ranked second in the state, is 15-2-3. They lost 1-0 to top ranked Parkview April 23 and 2-1 to seventh-ranked Duluth March 16. They defeated Kell and Chattahoochee 2-1 in their state playoff games. Parkview is 16-0-4 and has beaten Wheeler 5-0 and eighth-ranked Pope 3-0 to make the state quarterfinals.

Visit www.thecitizennews.com for soccer updates and game times when they are determined.