BOYS' SOCCER: Goldsboro falls in opening-round playoff game

By Justin Hayes
Published in Sports on November 6, 2016 1:45 AM

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jhayes@newsargus.com

There's chaos, then there's organized chaos.

Graham High School used healthy doses of the latter on Saturday night to upend third-seeded Goldsboro High, 3-1, in the opening round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 2-A soccer playoffs.

And the harsh, one-and-done result was definitely a shocker.

Goldsboro, which claimed its first outright Eastern Carolina 2-A conference title in school history Tuesday, figured to have an easy time with the 14th-seeded Red Devils, who entered the match with a 8-10 overall record.

Then Graham coach PJ Michaelson made an impromptu change to his club's game plan.

"Just seeing how long the field was, I figured we'd be able to exploit the corners and then cross," the head coach said. "That was the game plan."

And one that worked to perfection.

Sophomore Clemente Pacheco entered the scorebook in the 29th minute, redirecting a ball that had been brilliantly repelled seconds earlier by GHS junior Chandler Patrick.

The strike seemed to deflate the Cougars, who failed to convert any of their six shots on goal in the first half -- including a Xan Pate penalty kick after Graham was called for handling in the 19th minute.

For Goldsboro head coach Chad Lewis, the missed opportunities were frustrating, but not alarming.

"We came out strong," Lewis said. "And the second half, I don't know if we got tired or what... We had to get that equalizer, and it didn't happen."

Primarily because of the effort of Rivas, who dominated all aspects of the second stanza.

The senior captain swarmed the pitch with fluidity, directing the flow of traffic away from midfield and toward the touchline, where Graham used its speed to create matchup headaches for the Cougars.

In the 50th minute, Rivas ripped a left-footer over the outstretched gloves of Goldsboro's Patrick. A mere 18 minutes later, he struck again, torching another in the corner net to provide the Red Devils an insurmountable 3-0 advantage.

"That's as close to perfect as we're ever gonna play," Michaelson said. "Very happy with the way it turned out."

The same could not be said for Goldsboro, who notched its lone goal in the 77th minute when Pate laced a one-timer past Graham keeper Alex Perez, who was otherwise impenetrable all night.

Graham 3, Goldsboro 1.

The early exit was difficult for many of the third-seeded Cougars to bear, but placed in proper perspective by their first-year head coach.

"They're amazing," Lewis said of his players. "Four of them hadn't played soccer, or hadn't played in years and gave us great minutes... they boosted this program tremendously."

Graham will next face sixth-seeded powerhouse Jordan Matthews on Tuesday, which defeated Greene Central 9-0 earlier in the day. Goldsboro concluded its season with an 10-8-2 overall record.