Fayetteville Academy soccer scores late goal to win quarterfinal
Julian Barbaro scored the game-winning goal with 17.1 seconds to play.
For 80 minutes in Saturday’s NCISAA 2-A quarterfinal, Fayetteville Academy poured on a persistent attack against the visiting O’Neal School.
Despite some quality chances, the Eagles — the reigning state champions and this year’s top seed — found themselves scoreless against unseeded O’Neal with less than 20 second to play in regulation.
“I wasn’t expecting it to be as hard as it was, considering how hard we had been practicing this week,” senior Julian Barbaro said. “I thought we were going to come out with better results at finishing.”
Barbaro finally pushed the Eagles over the hump, scoring on a rebounded ball inside the box with 17.1 seconds left.
With the win, the Academy (12-2) advances to Tuesday’s semifinal round. The Eagles will host No. 4 seed Westchester Country Day (11-5).
The Eagles’ scoring possession began with a throw-in by Hudson Zeisman, one of a dozen tosses the Eagles took in the scoring third of the field in the second half of the game.
Davis Saint-Armand got a boot on it but dinged the ball off the near post. Barbaro was on the spot, tapping it in past Falcons keeper Boone Hancock.
Barbaro’s late goal Saturday gave the senior some sweet relief, not only lifting the Academy to a win, but negating the importance of an earlier missed chance on a penalty kick with 32 minutes left to play.
That play also started with a Zeisman throw-in, which was cleared, but the Falcons were whistled for a foul in the box in the aftermath.
Hancock denied Barbaro’s penalty kick with a kick save, preserving the scoreless tie.
“I was just hoping everyone wouldn’t get overwhelmed with what just happened and would keeping moving forward,” Barbaro said. “I was worried we would get scared and fall apart, because that was going to be one of our only chances in the game.”
The Eagles had chances, but most were squashed by the Falcons’ defense, which crowded the box, limiting the Eagles’ opportunities to serve up quality balls in front of the goal.
When the Academy managed to put a ball on goal, Hancock, a former field player who moved into goal five games ago, came up with the save. He recorded 23 on the night.
“The game is about scoring on chances, and we didn’t put the ball in, especially early on,” Eagles’ coach Andrew McCarthy said. “And give all the credit to O’Neal, because they made it difficult for us.”
The Falcons end their season at 13-4.
“Fayetteville Academy is the top program in the state, and we stood up and played as well as we could play them,” O’Neal co-coach James Franklin said. “We got a few chances ourselves, but certainly, they are the best team in the state for a reason.”
Staff writer Jaclyn Shambaugh can be reached at jshambaugh@fayobserver.com or 910-609-0651.
Julian Barbaro scored the game-winning goal with 17.1 seconds to play.
For 80 minutes in Saturday’s NCISAA 2-A quarterfinal, Fayetteville Academy poured on a persistent attack against the visiting O’Neal School.
Despite some quality chances, the Eagles — the reigning state champions and this year’s top seed — found themselves scoreless against unseeded O’Neal with less than 20 second to play in regulation.
“I wasn’t expecting it to be as hard as it was, considering how hard we had been practicing this week,” senior Julian Barbaro said. “I thought we were going to come out with better results at finishing.”
Barbaro finally pushed the Eagles over the hump, scoring on a rebounded ball inside the box with 17.1 seconds left.
With the win, the Academy (12-2) advances to Tuesday’s semifinal round. The Eagles will host No. 4 seed Westchester Country Day (11-5).
The Eagles’ scoring possession began with a throw-in by Hudson Zeisman, one of a dozen tosses the Eagles took in the scoring third of the field in the second half of the game.
Davis Saint-Armand got a boot on it but dinged the ball off the near post. Barbaro was on the spot, tapping it in past Falcons keeper Boone Hancock.
Barbaro’s late goal Saturday gave the senior some sweet relief, not only lifting the Academy to a win, but negating the importance of an earlier missed chance on a penalty kick with 32 minutes left to play.
That play also started with a Zeisman throw-in, which was cleared, but the Falcons were whistled for a foul in the box in the aftermath.
Hancock denied Barbaro’s penalty kick with a kick save, preserving the scoreless tie.
“I was just hoping everyone wouldn’t get overwhelmed with what just happened and would keeping moving forward,” Barbaro said. “I was worried we would get scared and fall apart, because that was going to be one of our only chances in the game.”
The Eagles had chances, but most were squashed by the Falcons’ defense, which crowded the box, limiting the Eagles’ opportunities to serve up quality balls in front of the goal.
When the Academy managed to put a ball on goal, Hancock, a former field player who moved into goal five games ago, came up with the save. He recorded 23 on the night.
“The game is about scoring on chances, and we didn’t put the ball in, especially early on,” Eagles’ coach Andrew McCarthy said. “And give all the credit to O’Neal, because they made it difficult for us.”
The Falcons end their season at 13-4.
“Fayetteville Academy is the top program in the state, and we stood up and played as well as we could play them,” O’Neal co-coach James Franklin said. “We got a few chances ourselves, but certainly, they are the best team in the state for a reason.”
Staff writer Jaclyn Shambaugh can be reached at jshambaugh@fayobserver.com or 910-609-0651.
