ELIZABETHTOWN – Senior Jamie Delgado fired in 2 goals to lead East Bladen to a 3-0 victory over South Columbus Wednesday night in the Eagles Waccamaw Conference boys’ soccer opener.
Junior Gabril Algozy knocked in the 1st Eagle goal off a feed from junior Chace Butler early in the opening half. “Chace brought the energy tonight,” said East Coach Jay Raynor. “He did great things on the ball and had a few shots that just barely missed. Those things were nice but what stood out to me was the fact he held his teammates accountable and got them going when they needed it.”
Delgado banged in his 1st goal late in the 1st half converting a pass from senior Zac Metz to stretch the Eagle lead to 2-0. Delgado netted his 2nd goal after halftime off of a throw-in from Metz who finished with 2 assists.
“All 3 of those guys (Algozy, Delgado and Metz) had good games,” noted Raynor. “I thought they grew into the game and got better as the game went on. We had a strong first half and a strong last 25 or so minutes in the second half.”
Raynor added, “The guys played well and have improved. They controlled the game and dominated the ball for the duration of the match. With not playing in 11 days and battling the weather today, I was proud of the guys for not only their effort but also their level of play.”
The Eagles outshot the Stallions 14-2 in the 1st half and 25-3 for the game.
“Marco Ventura had a career night for us,” stated Raynor. “He helped generate our attack as well as retain position when we won the ball. Numerous times he was able to combine and overlap in the flank. He made us dangerous and helped open space inside for Jamie and Tyler Eason as well as Damian (Alonzo-Sanchez) to create. Proud of him and the confidence he played with today.”
Raynor continued, “His counterpart (Colin King) on the other side of the field did the exact same. Colin was up and down the line all night. He was part of several sequences and even got on the end of a goal but was ruled offsides. There aren’t many guys on the field that bring it like Colin does.”
“Debo (Davion Lewis) and Jayce (Hatcher) didn’t have to do much tonight but when they had to they made plays and made them count,” stated Raynor. “Several times we put those guys in tough positions defensively but they made the plays to help us retain a clean sheet. Those two also got involved when we were in possession of the ball and made some great decisions.”
Raynor said, “JD (McArthur) probably had the most touches tonight and did a phenomenal job. We do our best to find him and he does an excellent job making decisions when on the ball. We also put him in some tough positions but he came out of them. That’s what he does. Amazing work ethic combined with an understanding of how to use his body.
“Tyler Eason and Damian played well for us tonight in midfield,” shared Raynor. “Both are players and their skill sets help us keep the ball while we generate our attack. Damian looked more sure of himself, made numerous penetrating runs and had a couple of good shots on goal. I also loved how he defended and won the ball back.”
Andrew Musselwhite played significant minutes for us at right back tonight,” said Raynor. “Andrew brought a ton of energy when he was in. He came in and immediately was involved. He did a great job on both sides of the ball for us tonight.”
“Tevin McClean had a solid performance for us,” said Raynor. “He made some runs and got on the end of a few balls. I don’t think we utilized him and his skill sets the best tonight. Last time out we put Tevin in situations to use his speed. Tonight I thought we crowded him and didn’t give him the room he needed to get behind their backline.”
Senior Lee Barnes and junior Fernando Rebollar teamed up for the shutout in goal and were credited with 1 save each. “Our keepers were great as usual,” shared Raynor. “Those guys are always locked in and it’s a position I don’t have to worry about. Fernando really opened up the game for us with his distribution. We were able to pull South out and deep into our half, then Fernando was able to serve the ball into our forwards and bypass their midfield.”
Raynor concluded, “We need to continue to work on finishing and getting runners in the box as well finding those runners. However, our focus has been getting the ball from one end to the other and retaining possession. We are doing that and getting better daily at it.”
The Eagles, now 3-2, will visit Clinton Thursday at 6:30.
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