Hawks Soar to 2-1 Victory Over Cross-Town Rival Blue Devils
Most people in Lenoir County know when the Hawks and Blue Devils meet in competition, it will be a fierce and hard-fought battle. This was exactly what played out on the pitch Wednesday night in “The Swamp,” which saw the home team Hawks take the 2-1 victory.
“I saw grit tonight. I saw these guys not give up. Last couple of games I questioned their heart a little bit; tonight they showed me up,” North Lenoir Head Coach Chris Evans said after the win.
The Hawks looked like a team trying to prove their coach wrong tonight. From the first whistle, the home team displayed constant ball possession and pressure in the attacking zone. The constant pressure led to a penalty by the Blue Devils in the 11th minute of the first half. #5 Maddox Smith took the free kick and put it past the Blue Devils' goalie for the 1-0 lead. Smith now has 14 goals on the season, leading his team.
The Blue Devils started to gain momentum towards the end of the first half but ultimately ended up down 1-0 at halftime. Second-half adjustments from the Blue Devils were evident at the start of the half. However, it was #10 Chris Romero and the Hawks who netted the next goal, going up 2-0. #7 Yahir Hernandez and #11 Marvin Sandoval earned assists on Romero’s goal.
Most teams would start to shut down after getting down 2-0, but the Blue Devils continued to pressure, and with 24 minutes of game time left, their pressure paid off with an own goal from a Hawks defender. This own goal was the only time that the ball crossed the goal line manned by freshman Evan Smith, who made play after play during the match.
“It got stressful in the end, especially. We kept making a couple of plays, but we got back right to it,” Smith said after the game. The win moves the Hawks to 6-7 overall and 2-2 in conference play. The loss for the Blue Devils sees their record at 7-5-1 overall and 0-4 in conference play.
The Hawks will have a quick turnaround as they host James Kenan on Thursday night, while the Blue Devils will look to get back to their winning ways against East Duplin at home on Friday.
This win improves the Hawks' record against the Blue Devils to 22-4 all-time. The Blue Devils haven't beaten the Hawks since 2016, losing the last 14 straight matches to their rival. The Blue Devils will look to even the season series on October 28th, which will be the final regular-season match for both teams down across the river.
