In a game that featured five yellow cards, the Permian boys soccer team was able to notch a 1-0 win over Abilene High on Friday at Ratliff Stadium.
Aaron Hernandez struck a long goal to put the Panthers up in the 26th minute.
With 19 minutes remaining in the second half, each team had already been issued a pair of yellow cards. The tempers continued to flare and it finally reached a boiling point when players got into a heated confrontation with 13 minutes left.
Despite all the adversity, Permian was able to keep its composure and persevere.
“It was well fought. I think the guys never gave up and they showed a lot of fight, lot of heart tonight,” Permian head coach Luis Carmona said. “Little physical, little rough there, but we kept our composure and we didn’t let one in.”
In its last two matches, Permian had let its opponent score within the final five minutes. This time around, the back line was virtually impenetrable.
One big factor in the clean sheet was the effort put in by goalkeeper Carson Roberts, who made some sensational saves.
Getting a win was a huge confidence booster for the Panthers after tying with San Angelo Central and Abilene Cooper in the last two weeks.
“The guys realize that now the last two games against Central and Cooper, we let them in the last five, 10 minutes of the game,” Carmona said. “The guys held on today. We couldn’t ask for more.”
The Panthers have had a rough start and this game helped give them some new-found confidence, which they have deeply needed.
“Obviously, we’ve been having a pretty tough season scoring-wise and with a chance to put one in for my team means a lot to us,” Hernandez said. “I think it’ll get us going in the long run.”
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