Cyclones suffer shutout loss to Panthers
Published 9:06 am Friday, March 14, 2025
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent Elizabethton goalkeeper Tucker Taylor (84) punches away a Panthers corner kick in the early minutes of the first half of the match between the Cyclones and Portland.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent Portland’s onslaught was relentless during the first half. Cyclones goalkeeper Tucker Taylor (84) makes a two-handed stop of a shot on goal early in the first half.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent Portland’s Porter Dillow (7) delivers a penalty kick from 35 yards out, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead at the 29-minute mark of the first half. Cyclones goalkeeper Tucker Taylor (84) makes a valiant effort on the shot but dives in the wrong direction.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent The Cyclones go on the attack as Aidan Dillard (4) breaks downfield and takes a shot on goal from around 20 yards out midway through the first half.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent Portland goalkeeper Brayden Perry (0) steps in front of the Cyclones’ Drake Teague (17) and deflects a point-blank shot on goal back into play around the 10-minute mark of the first half.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent The Cyclones’ Zack Curtis (3) takes a shot on goal from nearly 30 yards out late in the first half.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent Elizabethton goalkeeper Tucker Taylor (84) makes a final leaping save, with just seconds left in the first half, on a high long-range shot by Portland, keeping the Panthers' lead at 1-0.
Larry N. Souders/Star Correspondent The Cyclones’ Reece Vernon (10) works to dribble past Portland’s Elijah Zimmerman (2) near midfield late in the first half.
|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Star Correspondent
Despite having more shots on goal than Portland, the Elizabethton Cyclones couldn’t manage to get one of those shots past the Panthers’ hulking goalkeeper Brayden Perry on Wednesday at Citizens Bank Stadium in a 2-nil loss.
“We need to raise our intensity,” Cyclones head coach Doug Schulz said. “We are very quiet out there and had a lot of silly offside penalties. If we can clean up some of these things, we’ll be all right.”
The Panthers scored in the 12th minute after a questionable penalty occurred in the penalty box on what seemed like incidental contact and a flop that gave Portland a penalty kick. Brayan Figueroa nailed the shot low and to Cyclones goalkeeper Tucker Taylor’s right for a 1-nil advantage.
“The PK they got that gave them the lead seemed generous,” Schulz said. “We had a lot of opportunities that didn’t pan out. I know when we were attacking on this end, we had a lot of offsides. I’m trying to get them to talk a little bit more.”
Portland was able to carry that advantage into the halftime break, with EHS (2-1-1 overall) outshooting Portland 5-4 in the half. The Cyclones had seven offside calls go against them as they seemed overeager and not able to identify where the ball was in the moment.
They also had several long passes go a bit too long when they were onside and had players seemingly frustrated.
The Cyclones opened the second half with a good scoring opportunity, with a corner kick from Connor Blevins getting to Perry, who made a clean stop despite traffic in the box. In the 46th minute, a free kick from Issac Perez from 45 yards out found its way into the penalty area, where Bryson Hill redirected the ball past Taylor to stake the Panthers to a two-goal lead.
“We dropped a man there, and he got behind us,” Schulz said. “We have some work to do. We get Morristown East tomorrow, and we’ll try to rest and hydrate and get ready for that.”
Portland 2, EHS 0
Portland 1 1 – 2
EHS 0 0 – 0
First Half
P – Figueroa (penalty kick) 12:00
Second Half
P – Hill (assist Perez) 46:00
