Defense keys Adairsville boys soccer victory over Darlington

The Adairsville boys soccer team won a back-and-forth battle with Darlington Monday night as keeper B.J. Hardman made 16 saves in goal and Stuart Abernathy and Nick Jackson combined for five additional saves. Adairsville took an early lead only to have Darlington score a pair of goals to grab a 2-1 advantage in the battle of Tigers. Adairsville responded with a pair of unanswered goals for a 3-2 victory.

Danny Carillo scored two goals for Adairsville. Jesus Garcia scored the game-winner.

Chris Rodriguez contributed three assists in the contest. "The offense moved and passed the ball well," said Tigers coach Kelly Abernathy. "Gideon Perez and John Webster both had tremendous games defensively. They saved a couple of goals with their play."

With the victory, Adairsville improves to 4-1 on the season.

"Our defense is playing well right now and that's contributing to a lot of our success," noted Abernathy. "This is a big win for us. Hopefully we can keep the momentum going."

Adairsville plays at Model Wednesday and begins play in Region 6-AAA next week, traveling to Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe Tuesday, March 8 and hosting Coahulla Creek on Thursday, March 10.