Calhoun boys, girls sweep first-round matchups
Jackets hold off East Jackson; Lady Jackets score two goals in shutout
Survive and advance to the next day is always the goal once the postseason starts, and that was no different for Calhoun on Wednesday night.
The Jackets built a 3-0 lead midway through the second half but then survived a late flurry by the visiting East Jackson to hold on for a 3-2 win and advance to the second round of the Class AAA State Tournament.
Calhoun (13-4-1) got a game-clinching, punchout save from Eduardo Fajardo, one of his five on the night, on an East Jackson free kick from 30 yards away seconds before the final buzzer sounded.
Calhoun coach Matt Rice said he was pleased with the result and was proud of his team for holding off the Eagles’ late charge.
“I thought at the start of the game we were searching a little bit for our identity, and we got a nice goal to take a 1-0 lead into halftime,” said Rice. “In the second half we came out inspired and took the three-goal lead, but East Jackson kept fighting and our guys held on when they needed to. We’re still banged up pretty badly so we’re trying to find roles for different guys and fill some holes for the guys that are missing, but the important thing is we came home with a win. That’s what we’re trying to do now is just make it to the next round, and I’m proud of the guys for getting it done.”
The Jackets will now advance to play Pike County in the second round after the Pirates defeated Liberty County 6-4 in their first-round matchup.
Calhoun controlled possession for a majority of the first half on Wednesday and eventually got on the board first with an Eric Garcia goal in the 28th minute off an Oscar Huerta assist. Several other chances narrowly missed or were saved by the East Jackson goalkeeper to keep the score at 1-0 going into the half.
The Jackets turned up the pressure to start the second half and quickly doubled their lead with an Irvin Campos goal in the 42nd minute off an assist on a corner kick from Garcia.
They continued to attack and Daniel Isep rocketed home a goal in the 60th minute to put the Jackets up 3-0 as they looked to be in total control of the game.
But East Jackson (7-11) refused to go away and put their own pres- sure on from that point forward. The Eagles were fouled in the box in the 62nd minute, and Edgar Aguirre converted on the penalty kick to make it 3-1. A few minutes later, another foul was called on Calhoun in the box, and Aguirre knocked in his second penalty-kick goal of the night to pull his team within one.
The Calhoun defense held strong from there, turning away multiple East Jackson chances, including Fajardo’s save in the final seconds of regulation on a free kick.
“Our defense is a very solid unit, and they commit to give everything they have for each other every game. I don’t know if any team’s defense works as hard as ours does, but they take pride in that. They communicated well and made some big plays at down the stretch tonight. I’m proud of their effort.”
Rice added that the win was also good to get his young team some playoff experience.
“Of our roster of about 21 players, I think only seven of them have ever played in a playoff game,” said Rice. “So there is always a bit of a learning curve with that. I think our guys got settled in and improved as the game went on. They stepped up their level of play and intensity, and that’s what it takes in the playoffs.”
In the Calhoun girls first-round game earlier on Wednesday:
Calhoun girls 2, East Jackson 0
The Region 6-AAA champion Lady Jackets kept their momentum rolling right into the playoffs with a shutout victory, scoring two goals within three minutes of each other, and that was enough to advance.
Calhoun (13-3) controlled possession throughout the game and dented the scoreboard in the 30th minute on a beautiful goal by Katie Macario off an assist from Mari Morales.