DUNN – Midway scored the game-winning goal with 7 minutes left to play and edged East Bladen 3-2 in the Southeastern Athletic Conference boys’ soccer opener for both teams.
The Raiders, now 5-2, built a 2-0 1st half lead, before the Eagles rallied to tie the game 2-2. “We came back and dominated play to tie it up,” said East Bladen Coach Jay Raynor. “But we missed a penalty kick, then gave up the game-winner.”
Eagle goalie Lee Barnes was injured in a collision that produced the 1st Midway goal in the 8th minute. The ball was rebounded off of the collision and tapped in.
In the 24th minute, the Midway intercepted a ball that Alex Hidalgo had cleared off the line and chipped it over Yontee Dobson’s head for a Raider goal. Dobson had replaced the injured Barnes in goal.
“We faced a lot of adversity tonight, and I thought the guys handled it all well,” noted Raynor. “We made some adjustments at halftime and changed the game in the second half. We dominated the game for 30 minutes. We pulled two goals back and got even. There were chances to go ahead and we didn’t capitalize on them.”
Chace Butler fired in the 1st Eagle goal off of an assist from Malcolm Bolden in the 51st minute. Six minutes later Bolden knocked in the tying goal off of an assist from Jamie Delgado.
“I’m proud of our guys and them not giving up,” stated Raynor. “They changed the game and dictated the flow of the game. I hate we couldn’t get the result. Yontee Dobson did great coming into the game for Lee and had several big saves. Jaime Delgado had a bad injury to his wrist but played through it.”
Midway outshot the Eagles 10-5 in the opening half, but East Bladen held a 10-4 edge in shots after intermission.
“Nathan Howell and Tyreon Graham were game changers for us tonight,” said Raynor. “Their motors never stopped and they left it all on the field. Our backs did a great job as well as our midfield.”
The Eagles, now 4-4 overall, will host Clinton Wednesday night at 6:00.
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