Perry Panthers lose their cool against the Houston County Bears

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Faced down in Freedom Field, the Perry Panthers (5-3-1) and Houston County Bears (6-3) competed in a mid-season match.

Perry was coming off of back-to-back wins against Westside and Howard, but fell to the Bears 5-0 on Tuesday night.

The game got edgy when the Panthers kicked off. Like a calm before a storm, the Bears seamlessly gained control of the match, passed around the Panthers and owned the first half.

Perry wasn’t going to let off Houston County easily. The Panthers gained speed and dashed down yards to tackle the Bears.

Although, that only seemed to make it worse. The Bears kept picking up the pace and shot the ball through Perry’s defensive line. Even with the Panthers’ speed, HoCo was able to sneak into the ten-yard box.

Now faced one-on-one against Perry’s elite goalkeeper, Josh Espinoza, the Bears had a chance to score.

Keeping it tight they got close, throwing Espinoza off his edge, and knocked it straight in the top left corner. Even with Espinoza’s great athleticism, it’s hard to match skill with a little bit of luck.

With the score now 1-0 HoCo, Perry was determined to tie the board. Attempting to use their speed, the Panthers midfield sent passes down the line. Luck was not on their side Tuesday night, as the shots were just inches out of their reach.

The Bears were quick to catch on the small mistakes and kept the ball in their possession. Using the chances Houston County was able to chase the ball back down the field.

Heading straight for Perry’s goal, the Bears charged right through the Panther’s defense. Yet, junior Trevor Veator wasn’t going to let them through.

He forced the Bears toward the corner away from Perry’s goal. In an unexpected move, they shot the ball over their heads. In a quick header, it bounced into the net, just inches away from Espinoza’s gloves.

The score read 2-0 as they went into halftime. After a break, Perry gained the spirit to turn this match into a storm.

Adding the heat straight into the second set, the Panthers started tackling the Bears. In heated battles, they sprinted up the field to slide right into the ball.

They earned the possession less than their attempts, but the Panthers continued their fight. When the Bears got back the ball, the Panthers were right behind them. This made it hard for the Bears to make their shots.

The minutes ticked down, and Perry made it a game to keep the score 2-0. They held them off for a while, but the Bears managed to break through.

They made a quick pass down the line, but they stopped thirty yards away from Perry’s net. HoCo held the ball there for a while, passing back and forth between the Panthers, but in a risky attempt. They let it fly right to the top of Perry’s goal.

In an amazing shot, the Bears forced the score to 3-0 HoCo.

It turned into a tornado of emotions quickly. Perry let it show, kicking the ball and camera haphazardly. This scored them a quick yellow card, but that wasn’t enough.

After a moment of deliberation. It was advanced to a red card, and Perry’s starting freshman will be benched for the following game.

Perry’s spirit looked drained after the storm. With a minute left in the match, an incredible misfortune happened.

The bleachers thought the game was over, but HOCO still had something left to say. Gaining the ball from their ten-yard box, the Bears dribbled it down the field. The Panthers defense couldn’t stop them as they gained more yards.

In one moment, feet away from the net, the Bears effortlessly scored it past Espinoza to make it 4-0. In the next, the Bears stole the ball from Perry in their kick-off.

They passed triangles around Perry and knocked it straight past everyone in seconds. They completely changed the score in less than a minute from 3-0 to 5-0.

The match ended with a devastating blow to Perry.

“We won’t let this loss stop us in our next match against Spalding [3-1]”, head coach Nathan Dooley said. “Just some sharpening up we have to do.”

UP NEXT

The Perry Panthers play against the Spalding Jaguars Fri. night at 7:30pm.

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