Piedmont Soccer Boys Have First Loss

The Piedmont Academy boys soccer team had been playing at a top-notch level this season, but the Cougars had a somewhat humbling experience Tuesday when they ventured to Gatewood.

The Cougars, who entered the match with a perfect record, were defeated Tuesday night in Eatonton 8-1.

“It doesn’t matter what Piedmont plays Gatewood in,” Cougar coach Dwain Landress said. “Both teams want to win. They came out more aggressive and we had a couple of defensive lapses. Gatewood had two players who were extremely fast and we didn’t have anyone on the back line who could match them.”

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Piedmont seemed to get discouraged after falling behind 2-0. Nick Adamczyk had several near misses for the Cougars and Davis Kimball had some quality attempts on goal.

“Nothing was falling for us,” Landress said. Despite not getting on the board until a goal from Nick Landress, Piedmont had hopes of rallying in the second half. However, Gatewood continued to add goal after goal to its total.

“I still thought we could come back and would play like we had been all season,” Landress said. “However, we began playing as individuals and not as a team. In the end, we had more attempts on goal but we just couldn’t finish. We made them look better than they were. They did want it more than we did.”

The Piedmont Lady Cougars fell 4-3 on penalty kicks after two overtime periods weren’t enough to decide the outcome.

“We were outplaying them early, but we weren’t getting any calls,” Landress said. “It was a very physical match. We weren’t scoring when we had the opportunity and when you aren’t getting calls then it makes it a double-edged sword.”

The loss was disappointing for the Lady Cougars as their coach said they played well enough to win.

“You hate to lose in that manner,” Landress said. “Everything seemed to bounce their way.”

Prior to Tuesday’s matches with Gatewood, the Piedmont boys crushed Class AAA Tiftarea 10-0 Friday at home.

“We didn’t know much about them,” Landress said. “We were a little concerned going in how well we would do.”

Nick Dimsdale set the tone with the first goal of the match. Austin Bass would add another score followed by a second goal from Dimsdale.

Piedmont would lead 6-0 at halftime, as Hunter Clark would score on an assist from Bobby Mitchell, who in turn then added the team’s fifth goal. Bass connected again for the 6-0 advantage.

In the second half, Dimsdale added two more goals followed by a score from Mitchell. Ben Davis added the 10th goal at the buzzer to complete the dominating performance.

“We were able to get a lot of people involved,” Landress said. “It was a strong win for us.”

The Lady Cougars faced Mt. de Sales Friday night, the No. 2-ranked team in Class AAA. Wanting to use the match as a measuring stick, Landress said the coaches knew it wo0uld be a tough challenge. Mt. de Sales took a 6-0 victory but the game was competitive, especially in the first half.

“We had plenty of opportunities,” Landress said. “We just couldn’t find the net. We played well to start the second half but they managed to get another one in. We continued to attack but just couldn’t score. I think if we played them again we could compete. I felt about as good as I could after a 6-0 loss. We had just as many scoring opportunities as they did.”

Piedmont Academy’s Middle School girls soccer team defeated Gatewood 3-1 Tuesday on the road.

Bridgette Phillips scored and had an assist while Haley Tyler and Taylor Swart also added goals. Alicia Peek registered an assist.

“We dominated the whole game,” said coach Jake Landress. “We did everything we were supposed to do. I couldn’t be any prouder of the girls. They have really been working hard. Everyone played well for us. Gatewood’s only goal was a fluke