Jackets control game to close out region with 7-0 victory
The Calhoun boys played host to the Adairsville Tigers on Thursday for Senior Night, and the ultra-accomplished senior class went out with a bang. The Jackets thrashed Adairsville, winning 7-0, in their final region game of the regular season.
Calhoun (12-4, 8-1) was caught off guard early against the Tigers (3-16-1, 2-9-1) as Adairsville started the game off on the front foot and saw most of the ball and even generated a scoring chance. However, the Jackets settled down quickly and opened their scoring with a fantastic goal by Johnathan Castillo from approximately 40 yards out.
Three minutes later, Castillo made his presence known again on the offensive end as he sent in a nice cross to Jorge Aranda, who settled the ball, pivoted and slotted it in the back of the net. From that point on, all the momentum shifted to the home side, and Calhoun started pouring it on. Daniel Isep scored in the 14th minute. Then, in the 27th minute, Aranda scored his second goal of the day from close range.
Calhoun was not done with their scoring onslaught in the first half as Eric Garcia added another goal with less than a minute to go. The halftime whistle sounded, and the Yel- low Jackets took a 5-0 lead going into the break.
Although Calhoun still dominated possession, Adairsville looked slightly improved in the second half and had some good counterattacks. However, they were all for nothing as the Jackets’ defense was very strong. Their best scoring chance came in the later portion of the game, when goalkeeper Alonzo Purvis was forced to make a great save of an Adairsville free kick.
The Jackets added two more goals in the second period. Isep scored his second goal on the night as he chipped a ball over the keeper’s head and into the back of the net. Julio Lopez came off the bench and scored a goal in the 60th minute to make the score 7-0, which was the final.
After the game, head coach Matt Rice said he was proud of the positive result for his team and his senior class.
“We’re really proud of them,” said Rice. “We appreciate everything we’ve gotten as far as their push, their drive and their commitment. This senior class has stepped up. They’ve set examples. No matter how good the weather was or how bad the weather was, they’ve consistently been an example for everyone else to follow, so we’re really proud of them.”
Calhoun traveled to Sprayberry on Friday for a non-region contest to wrap up the regular season. They will host East Jackson in the first round of the Class AAA State Tournament on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
In the Calhoun-Adairsville girls game earlier on Thursday:
Calhoun girls 3, Adairsville 0
The Calhoun Lady Jackets got a nice win on Thursday evening as they defeated the Lady Tigers 3-0 to finish out a perfect region record.
The Lady Jackets (11-3, 9-0) were led by the standout performance of Leah Prather, who scored two beautiful goals and was a workhorse on the field. Carter Baggett added her name to the score sheet as well as she scored on a penalty early in the game.
Calhoun coach Randy Rice said was thrilled with his team.
“I was telling people before that this is a wonderful experience for us because we were hurt, we’ve been down, we’ve had so many players out, and we just kind of held together with band-aids, and the younger players have stepped up,” said Rice. “They’ve told themselves they aren’t going to lose. This is our first year here on this new field, but my girls haven’t lost on this field. With an undefeated home season and perfect region, you can’t ask for a whole lot more.”
The Lady Jackets visited Sprayberry on Friday to close out the regular season with a non-region test. They will open the Class AAA State Tournament on Wednesday at 5 p.m. against East Jackson.