Soccer: Eagles gain confidence heading into region play

The East Jackson boys’ varsity soccer team finished last week at .500, defeating Jefferson on Wednesday before falling to Cedar Shoals on Friday.

After a wet and rainy week, the Eagles met the Dragons on a slick and uneven field.

The Eagles struck first when Aldo Martinez made a run down the right side of the field, crossing the ball back for Blake Harwood to punch in the goal.

East Jackson ended the first half up 1-0.

Eagle goalkeeper Cody Cooper kept the Dragons at bay throughout the game as the East Jackson midfield maintained possession of the ball by making quick passes.

“There were chances at both ends, but our midfield did a solid job of maintaining pressure in the Jefferson half,” said Eagle head coach Chris Cooley.

East Jackson’s second score came on a 25-yard strike by Jonathan Zarco, which slipped right through the wet hands of the Jefferson goalkeeper.

Five minutes later, Luis Ponce sent a goal in from the halfway line that narrowly went under the crossbar.

The Eagle defense held on for the remainder of the game, sealing a 3-0 win over the Dragons.

On Friday, the Eagles traveled to AAAAA Cedar Shoals.

With several players absent in Atlanta for an academic event, the Eagles decided to start with a defensive setup.

“Our boys held strongly, and our forwards worked hard to hurry the Jaguar defense and prevent them from effectively joining the attack,” added Cooley. “Cedar Shoals possessed the center of the field and switched the ball quickly to the corners, but our boys did a great job of neutralizing a lot of those passes.”

Twenty minutes into the first half, a ball was set up for a Jaguar striker who put Cedar Shoals up 1-0 to end the first half.

The Jaguars quickly scored two more goals in the second half, before Jonathan Zarco caught their goalkeeper off guard for the first Eagle goal of the night. Cedar Shoals scored once more as time expired, winning the contest 4-1.

The Eagles traveled to Elbert County for their first region game of the year on Tuesday, but details were unavailable at press time.

East Jackson will host Franklin County on Friday, March 8, at 7 p.m.

Last Thursday, the junior varsity boys defeated Jackson County 5-2.

East Jackson took a 3-0 lead in the first half with Andres Perez distributing well from midfield and the Eagle defense holding steady.

The Panthers rallied for two scores in the second half, but the Eagles countered with two more goals of their own, sealing a 5-2 victory.

GIRLS

The East Jackson girls’ soccer team improved its record to 2-2 last week.

On Wednesday Feb. 26, the girls fell to Jefferson 4-3.

The Lady Eagles rebounded the following Friday with a 2-0 win over AAAAA opponent Cedar Shoals.

The Eagles began region play on Tuesday when they traveled to Elbert County to take on the Blue Devils, but details were unavailable at press time.

Friday, East Jackson will host region 8-AAA opponent Franklin County at 5:15 p.m.