Augusta Soccer Team slips past pesky Limeno Georgia III

Late Penalty Kick earns the hosts all three points in UPSL Georgia match

On paper, it looked to be a huge mismatch as last-place Limeno Georgia III made the trip Saturday afternoon to face the Augusta Soccer Team in UPSL Division 1 Georgia South conference play. On the field, it was a see saw, end-to-end, foul-heavy match that saw Augusta claim all three points in the close 3-2 victory for the hosts.

The match saw both teams trade attacking spells over the first 20 minutes with both defensive units doing enough to keep the game scoreless. A foul in the 27^th minute provided Limeno Georgia III with their best chance of the half and they converted a penalty kick to take a surprising 1-0 advantage to the halftime break. The young Limeno squad that included players as young as 15 years-old played with courage and poise as they held their own against the stronger Augusta side in the first 45 minutes. Soccer, however, is a 90-minute game.

The Augusta halftime talk worked wonders for the hosts as the momentum of the game clearly swung in their favor to open the second half. The speed of play as well as the pressure on the Limeno defense paid off in the 50th minute for Augusta as Alejandro Gonzalez collected a loose ball at the top of the box and rocketed a driven shot through a crowded penalty box that overpowered the keeper to level the match 1-1.

Just eight minutes later, Augusta was again threatening to score to force a Limeno foul just at the top of the box. Augusta took the kick quickly catching Limeno flat-footed and all the scrambling Limeno defender could do is trip the Augusta player in on goal to concede a penalty kick. Thomas DeMedicis calmly stepped up and converted the penalty low to the bottom left corner just past the diving keeper in the 58^th minute for the 2-1 Augusta lead.

Limeno pulled a goal back to make things interesting but another foul created another Augusta penalty kick that Isaac Stephenson converted late in the final minutes of the match to earn all three points for Augusta. 3-2 was the final score.

The win pushes Augusta into second place in the UPSL Division 1 Georgia South conference with 19 points on the season. Augusta has scored 26 goals while allowing 14 goals in their debut UPSL season.

The UPSL Spring regular season finale is June 8 as Augusta travels to play the Georgia Revolution U23 squad. Kickoff is set for 6 PM at Warhawk Stadium.