Eagles #11 Geo Pacheco and #5 Levi Toliver celebrate after Geo scored a goal off the throw-in assist by Levi.(Photo:SubmittedbyRheaCoSoccer)

Geo Pacheco and Gio Lopez Score Goals for Eagles

RCHS vs. Walker Valley Mustangs, 4-8-25

Walker Valley JV 0 Rhea County 0

The Eagles hosted the Walker Valley Mustangs on Tuesday night, April 7th, with some cooler weather for the evening. The JV squad started off with a strong showing, dominating the pace of the game but unable to find the back of the goal, despite multiple shots and attempts. A PK awarded for a foul in the box in the first half gave the opportunity for the Eagles to take the first goal of the night but unfortunately, the ball was shot wide, 0-0 at halftime. The second half continued to be dominated by the Eagles, but a strong performance by the Mustang keeper, Mitchell Delmotte, kept the Eagles scoreless, despite a few shots on point even within the last few minutes. Strong defensive performance by Elijah Norman, Simeon Toliver, Jeremy Perez, and Exar Vasquez kept the Mustangs to only 3 shots the entire game. JV record still stands undefeated with a tie now added to it.

Walker Valley Varsity 4 Rhea County 2

The Varsity followed up, hoping to seek retribution for last season, but some momentary lapses in defensive play allowed the Mustangs to take advantage and the first goal of the night came within the first 8 minutes of play by an absolute blast from about 25 yards out, and despite a diving leap by Eagles goalie, Wes Robinson, it contained too much power and just managed to sweep by his outstretched hands, Mustangs up 1-0. The Mustangs continued to apply pressure with runs and passing throughout the midfield, once again finding another crack and went up 2-0 with over 28 minutes left in the first half. The Eagles could have hung their heads, but they did not, they continued to battle and work to get a goal. A massive throw-in from Levi Toliver crossed over the goal where Geo Pacheco leapt up to contact the ball, colliding with the Mustang goalie but firmly landing the ball into the back of the net, Eagles now on the board, 2-1 at halftime. The second half saw the Mustangs come out, once again, drawing first blood with a  foul inside the box and despite a great dive by Robinson on the PK, the ball went in, Mustangs up 3-1. The Mustangs kept pushing, never relenting their pressure, and added a 4th goal to their stats within the first 20 minutes of the second half. Steven Henriquez had several runs up top, keeping the Mustang’s defense on their toes, and within the last 3 minutes, had another breakaway, which he crossed into the middle of the 18 box where it was bobbled around until it bounced outside the box to Gio Lopez, where he 1 touched blasted it past their keeper into the upper corner, bringing the Eagles to 4-2, which remained the final score. Senior Cooper Brackett had this to say, “ I thought we played a really good game overall. We had multiple chances and did a really good job moving the ball. We just need to fix a couple of things, and that game could have gone either way. I’m excited for the rest of the season, as we have really grown together, and we just need to continue to work hard and trust each other.” 

Eagles’ record now stands at 4-7, and they will host Cleveland Raiders on Friday, April 11th at 5:30 and 7pm. 

Artitcle by Audrey Norman