Southeast Bulloch was on the defensive for much of the night, but struck with 5:36 to play in a 1-0 victory over Statesboro Wednesday night at Womack Field.
    The Yellow Jackets earned a corner in the waning minutes of action and Reid Hadden beat the SHS defense to the low cross, catching it off of one bounce and sending it past Statesboro goalkeeper Drew Funk.
    Winding down his career at SEB, the senior couldn't have picked a better time to score his first goal ever.
    “This was a big win,” SEB coach Bob Massee said. “This is what we’ve been working towards. We have a couple of huge region games coming up. A win against a team like Statesboro is a great way to get some momentum heading back into region play.”
    Throughout the evening, the teams displayed contrasting styles of play.
    The Blue Devils (5-7-1) were able to keep possession for much of the game. Statesboro worked its way past midfield with short passes, but was never able to open up the SEB defense all of the way.
    Southeast Bulloch (6-3-1) stayed deep in its defensive set, then used athleticism and speed to burst downfield on one or two long passes when counter-attacking opportunities presented themselves. An aggressive run off of one of those long outlet passes finally paid off as Statesboro conceded a corner as it raced back to defend.
    One right foot from Hadden later, the Jackets had the goal they needed.
    Despite the Devils controlling the ball for much of the game, SEB had the best scoring chances.
    Doug Flott broke free late in the first half, but Funk dove left to save a low shot in the 1-on-1 chance for Flott.
    In the second half, Nathan Pollard uncorked a hard shot from 12 yards out, but Funk was there again.
    “We just kept grinding,” Massee said. “It’s easy to get down when you’re chasing the ball and you miss a few chances, but that’s not this team. Our guys aren’t going to give in and you saw that tonight.”
    Statesboro also wasn’t about to give up, forcing SEB goalkeeper Cole Carter into some tense moments as it tried to rally.
    The Devils sent in a corner kick with a minute to go which — after bouncing around the box — was sent toward the net by Wesley Budget before Carter made the save. Carter set the SEB celebration in motion in the final seconds when he out-jumped a Devil forward for a cross just in front of the goal as time expired.
    SEB sits at 3-2 in Region 1-AAA and travels to Blackshear next week to take on Pierce County in a game that could determine if the Jackets make the state playoffs.
    Statesboro hosts Peachtree Ridge at the Georgia Southern soccer complex Friday.
Lady Devils 3,   Lady Jackets 0
    The Statesboro girls dominated all 40 minutes of action, notching a 3-0 win over Southeast Bulloch in Wednesday’s first game.
    The Lady Yellow Jackets were able to hold the Lady Blue Devils at bay for the first 45 minutes, but an own goal gave Statesboro the advantage. Kiana Moody found the net again for the Devils five minutes later. Tori Thompson capped the scoring — and her Senior Night — with a 20-yard strike with just over 12 minutes to play.
    “Once we got that first one to go, the momentum came,” SHS coach Brian Thomas said. “It always gets a little easier to finish once you’re out in front.”
    After a first half of scoring opportunities never quite developing, Thomas pulled out the big guns. Thomas moved top scorer Thompson into a forward position and bumped Sarah Brown into the midfield from her starting spot on defense.
    Brown started the scoring run by winning possession and getting the ball to Marley Burke on the right sideline. Burke lofted a cross right in front of the net where SEB’s Casey Hadden was waiting. Unfortunately for the Jackets, instead of clearing the ball, Hadden redirected it past goalkeeper Brittany Bailey for the goal.
    Smelling the blood in the water, Statesboro quickly pounced again.
    With 30:28 to go in the game, Moody gained possession on a pass into a scrum in front of the net and easily slipped a goal inside of the right post.
    Statesboro established possession almost immediately after kickoff and played what seemed like a game of keep-away with the Yellow Jackets. Even when SEB was able to wrestle the ball away, it quickly sent the ball downfield where the Devils regained possession and reset their attack.
    For all of the ball control, Statesboro had a hard time finding good looks at the goal. Southeast Bulloch’s back four consistently gave ground, but were able to block any shooting or passing lanes inside of the 18 yard box and cut out numerous high passes sent deep down the sidelines.
    “SEB did a good job of defending,” Thomas said. “We made the decision to change things up a little bit with our positioning and that really helped us put on more pressure.”

    Mike Anthony may be reached at (912) 489-9404.