BOYS' SOCCER: Rams capitalize on Cougars' mental miscues

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on October 21, 2016 9:57 AM

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bcoley@newsargus.com

Thursday's game between Goldsboro and Greene Central was a battle for supremacy in the Eastern Carolina 2-A Conference.

Both teams stood at 4-0 in the conference, and a win would put destiny firmly in either squad's grasp.

With that in mind, the Cougars controlled the ball, applied pressure in the box and kicked plenty of shots toward the goal.

By the end, however, Goldsboro had nothing to show for its effort. Two key miscues by the defense handed Greene Central a 2-1 victory, and more importantly, first place.

"We outplayed them," said Goldsboro head coach Chad Lewis. "We held possession most of the game. We had twice as many shots as they did. We couldn't finish."

The Cougars obtained an early 1-0 lead in the 11th minute when Mickey Eovine charged down the left side and booted the ball from about 15 yards out.

Then came the mental lapses.

The Rams were on the offensive attack in the 32nd minute. A collision from a Goldsboro defender inside the box led to a penalty kick by Greene Central's Nailah Ortega.

Ortega's shot deflected off the hands of Cougars' goalkeeper Chandler Patrick and rolled safely across the goal line.

The second mental error proved to be more crucial.

In the 72nd minute the ball appeared to go out of bounds, setting up a goal kick by Goldsboro. The Cougars' defense moved on from the play, but the Rams did not.

A Greene Central player gained possession of the ball before it crossed the white line, and found Rams' striker Randy Salinas who was unmarked. Salinas easily headed the ball into the net.

"Those two mental lapses after it was a 1-0 game, but it should've been a 5-0 game," Lewis said. "We missed four empty nets. Can't really be upset because we outplayed the team. We just have to work on the small things."

Goldsboro had over 15 shots and seven corner kicks. Meanwhile, Greene Central only mustered four shots and had no corner kicks.

Lewis said the Cougars did not show enough patience when scoring opportunities were available.

"Especially in a close game, they're freaking out and getting too overanxious," Lewis said. "I think they're trying to overpower the ball instead of just place it. You're on the six-yard line and you're trying to hit it as hard as you can when there's an open net and all you have to do is pass it."

The loss ended Goldsboro's four-game winning streak.

The Cougars won't have to wait long to seek revenge. The teams meet next week in Snow Hill. Lewis likes his team's chances in the rematch.

"I feel very confident in that game," Lewis said. "This game is just a hiccup in the road. I don't think it'll be a problem next week. We'll have the same game plan -- you can't really change anything when you have so many opportunities."