3 of 4 local AAAA girls soccer teams advance, McIntosh boys only local AAAA survivor

It was all smiles for Whitewater as Erin Emerson and Jewlia Strickland combined on all three goals in the Lady Wildcats first round win.

Update: More state playoff games were played on Wednesday night and the results were mixed for the local teams.

McIntosh's boys stayed alive and unbeaten with a 3-1 win over Tucker, while Starr's Mill's boys were handed their second straight loss, 2-1 by Lakeside, DeKalb, and were knocked out of the playoffs. The Starr's Mill Lady Panthers defeated Lakeside, DeKalb 5-0, while Whitewater's boys lost to Chamblee 2-1 in overtime, eliminating them from the state playoffs.

The Lady Panthers got a pair of goals from Mandy McCalla and a goal a piece from Olivia Davis, Carlie Banks and Rebecca Bonilla. Kelli Davis had two assists. Coach Deanise Myers also credited Katrina Frost with playing well, making some key tackles and stopping Lakeside's attacks.

The wind was blowing on Tuesday night and it helped advance Whitewater and Northgate’s girls to the second round of the Class AAAA state playoffs, while ending the season for the McIntosh Lady Chiefs.

Whitewater hosted Forsyth Central and played into the wind in the first half. The Lady Wildcats got a first half goal when Jewlia Strickland headed in a free kick from Erin Emerson. Whitewater was able to hold off a number of shots and advances from the Lady Bulldogs as the first half came to a close.

In the second half, Whitewater dominated play. Emerson scored on a free kick from close to 30 yards out, the shot curling inside the upper left corner of the net. She also ripped a shot eight minutes later that the Forsyth Central keeper couldn’t hang on to. Strickland finished off the rebound to give Whitewater a 3-0 win.

The Lady Wildcats will play at Hillgrove next Tuesday. The winner of that game will meet the winner of Glynn Academy and Dutchtown on May 1.

Northgate’s Lady Vikings took out Chamblee with a 1-0 win on Tuesday. The two teams were deadlocked at 0-0 at the half, but Northgate put the game away late in the second half with a goal from Elizabeth Mosby. The win sets up a game between Northgate and Salem at Salem next Tuesday. The winner of that game meets the winner of Thomas County Central and Evans on May 1.

In McIntosh’s game with Marist, the wind kept the Lady Chiefs on their heels in the first half and Marist took a 1-0 lead 27 minutes in. McIntosh tied the game early in the second half with a goal from Kerri Reid, but Marist scored two goals in the next 10 minutes to secure the win, one off a counter play and another from a corner kick.