PJC soccer teams showing great potential

Published or Revised September 11, 2015

The men’s program at Paris Junior College completed a very successful road trip to Laredo Community College and Costal Bend College last weekend. The boys won against Laredo 3-2 - a great comeback after being down by two goals. Freshman Cyrus Gakuo of Dallas added the first two goals, while freshman Jordan LeClair of Prosper created the game winner. Laredo has received votes in current National Junior College Athletic Association rankings. Saturday PJC shut out Coastal Bend College by a score of 2-0. Houston freshman Reagan Abbott scored the opener and freshman Michael Luster of Lewisville added the late insurance goal. These victories came on the heels of a 2-1 defeat of Hill College, who at the time was nationally ranked fifteenth. Hill finished the 2014 season at fifth in the nation. “The boys have been improving every day and have performed very well against some of the best in the nation,” said PJC Men’s and Women’s Soccer Coach John Cossaboon. “Our strength comes from the boys playing for each other. We have produced 12 goals from 11 different players.” With games against San Jacinto College and Tyler Junior College on the horizon things won’t be easier, and PJC’s all freshman team will need to raise their level accordingly. The men are tied for second in the conference standings, with a record of 2-1 and an overall record of 4-2. The PJC women’s soccer team had early success against Eastern Oklahoma State College (2-0) and Eastfield College (3-0), before losing on the road to Eastfield (3-1). “The girls are working hard and our hope is to come together as we move into this very tough schedule,” said Cossaboon. “We have a lot of potential with nine starting freshman.” The women’s record is 1-5 overall, with a record of 0-1 in conference. Paris natives Yuliana Morales and Leonal Gutierrez are both contributing to their respective teams, Yuliana as a goalkeeper and Leonal as a defender. The PJC men next face a tough conference opponent with San Jacinto College at 4 p.m. this Friday in Paris. The women travel to play Navarro College, ranked 15th in the nation, at noon on Saturday. Their next home game is September 14 against Brookhaven College at 4 p.m. Friday, September 18, both men and women face Tyler Junior College at Noyes Stadium. Both Tyler teams are currently ranked fourth nationally. Start times are 2 p.m. for women and 4 p.m. for men.