Soccer Teams Enjoying A Successful Season

By Sports Boosters

JV Boys Soccer Season Underway

The JV boys’ soccer team kicked off their season despite a few weeks of inclement weather causing early season cancellations. In the first game, they fought strong but came up a little short in a 1-0 loss against Thomasville. However, they bounced back against Pace the following day to win 2-1 in a dramatic comeback with second half goals from Floris ten Lohuis and Ethan Lyle. Then the boys went on to face Wesleyan the following week. The boys fought hard, and the game was scoreless at halftime. Wesley seized the momentum in the second half, scoring three goals in the first fifteen minutes. However, the AIS boys carved out a few good chances to score, including a goal line save by the Wesleyan keeper off a shot from Elliot Forman. In the final game before Spring Break, the boys took on a very strong Providence Christian Academy side and leapt out to a 1-0 halftime lead off a long distance strike from Oliver Flautt. Good goalkeeping from Elliot Flautt and David Hahn kept Providence to only one goal in the second half, and the game ended as a draw.

After four games under their belt the JV boys’ soccer team has one win, one draw and two losses. With each training session and game, the team has made dramatic strides of improvement, which should translate into a strong second half of the season. The team consists of Dylan Baker, Peter Beach, Ben Cheriyan, Elliott Flautt, Oliver Flautt, James Forde, Elliot Forman, Anton Gebhard-Koenigstein, Tobias Geiger, David Hahn, Benedict Herbst, Will Leekulcharoen, Paul Lindheim, Maurice Link, Ethan Lyle, Sergey Mavalyants, Markus McNally, Brian Pettitt-Schieber, Timur Selimovic, and Simon Thaler under the direction of Coach Jay Denslow.

Other Soccer News

The girls varsity team has been having a great season and coasted into spring break on a 4-2 record, with an additional preseason win. Coach Ken Dawson observed, "The girls are headed in a good direction as we continue to improve in many areas. The gap between AIS and other schools has closed and the race to the playoffs will be tight. I am looking forward to a big finish."

The varsity boys team is also 4-2 on the season, with its last win being a critical region win over Decatur. Despite being a very young team, AIS has performed remarkably well against some very tough competition. Critical wins in the two weeks following spring break will determine whether the boys will go to the state tournament.

Cancellations and rain have postponed the JV girls’ soccer season until recently. The first scheduled game was a scrimmage against Atlanta Girls’ School. Mary Doyle scored on an indirect kick, assist by Rana el-Nahas. Despite the final 4-1 score, the AIS girls did an awesome job for their first game. Coach Veronica McDaniel complemented the girls for their play, saying “What an energetic and motivated group of girls! We’re having a lot of fun.” The team includes Nikisha Amin, Mary Doyle, Rana El-Nahas, Ariana Fabian, Elisabeth Geyer, Dina Goodman, Gabriella Gorham, Marissa Jackson, Torryn Jennings-Hill, Nathaly Kerba, Tatiana Manidis, Ciara O’Halloran, Mathilde Petitpre-Harris, Katherine Porter, Christina Rutte, Adama Tarawally, and Cecilia Winter.

Look out for the weekly Parent Organization Bulletin for the Booster Report on specific game results.