The NC Warrior boys (0-1) and girls (0-1) varsity soccer teams faced the Lassiter Trojans for their first game of the season on Thursday, Jan 27. The night started with intensity but ended in both Warrior teams facing a 2-0 defeat against Lassiter. 

The girls’ varsity team aimed to bounce back from their scrimmage defeat against the Etowah Eagles on Monday, Jan 24. Lassiter won the coin toss to gain first possession, leading the Trojans to score the first goal of the night within the first two minutes. The Warriors fought hard both defensively and offensively in an effort to gain a lead with junior forward Zia Tomlin (24) nearly scoring multiple times, but could not breach the Trojans’ defense. The 20-minute mark of the first half saw the Trojans score their second goal on the Warriors. 

Half time started with Lassiter leading 2-0. Sophomore goalkeeper Hannah Mcleod (22) deflected any attempted goals Lassiter shot for the remainder of the match. The first game of the 2022 season for the Lady Warriors ended in a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Trojans. 

“I think we did good on dropping back as a team and working together defensively, so I think moving forward we just need to move that into the attack,” senior center defender and captain Kenna Armitage said. 

The Warriors gained support from parents and friends, as well as from both the girls and boys JV teams cheering from the stands. The Lady Warriors stay hopeful for the season despite their loss Thursday night and remain positive and proud of each other.

“I think we’ll do good this season, I think we have a lot of new players coming in that are really good and we have a lot of good returning players, so I think once we start working together as a team, we can come together and win some games,” Armitage said.

The boys varsity soccer team played later that evening, confident and determined to win. In the first half, several attempts along with several saves from both goalkeepers kept the game even. Both teams stayed neck and neck on both ends of the field resulting in a score of 0-0 at the end of the first half. The NC boys kept their energy up coming back from half time, but conceded a point within two minutes, allowing the Trojans a lead of 1-0 against NC. Junior goalkeeper Amar Džonlić (1) defended multiple attempted goals shot at him throughout the second half. With twenty minutes left in the game, Lassiter scored another goal against the Warriors leading the game with 2-0. The NC boys came close to tying up the game, but ultimately lost, fighting until the game’s final seconds. The boys took time after the game to reflect on their errors as a team.

“We need to help eachother out more and I think Ryan [Lungu 18] helped me a lot more than I helped him during the game. The captain, Jason [Ordoñez 3] helped me out too, but overall we still have a lot of great talent,” NC sophomore right back Cade Alexander (16) said.

Supporters came out to cheer the boys on as they took on Lassiter, and consoled the boys after the game. The boys encouraged each other and held their heads high as they left the field Thursday night. Both girls and boys teams will utilize the time leading up to their next game to prepare to face off against the Wolfpack at North Paulding this Tuesday, Feb 1.