FLEMING ISLAND - Gulf Breeze High striker Jonas Noury scored two goals, including the game-winner, to lift the visiting Dolphins to a 3-2 victory over Fleming Island in a region 1-5A quarterfinal at Randy Warren Memorial Stadium on Friday, Feb. 6.

The Golden Eagles, who have won the District 3-5A championship in each of head coach Roger Dailey’s first two years at the school, finish their season with a 10-4-3 record and were the only regional qualifier from the county. 

“It was a fantastic season,” Dailey said. “We had only returned one starter, so it was 10 new guys, and it was a matter of learning and carving out an identity. They did a fabulous job.”

In girls soccer regions, the district champion Clay High Lady Blue Devils lost their quarterfinal to Tallahassee Chiles while, at Beachside High, Fleming Island lost a 3-0 match to end both teams' seasons. Clay defeated Fleming Island on penalty kicks for the district 3-5A title. Clay finishes at 10-4-2. Fleming Island finishes at 7-9-2.

In region 1-1A, the defending Class 1A champion St. Johns Country Day School had a cruiser 8-0 win over St. John Paul II in their region opener and hosted Rocky Bayou Christian on Monday, Feb. 9.  St. Johns got another three-goal hat trick from senior forward Victoria Sarka with Alana Mantello scoring twice and Annabella Ernst, Adisienne Taylor and Sophia Miller also scoring. Mantello had four assists. Rocky Bayou Christian's record is 9-5-1 with St. Johns' record at 13-3-3. Rocky Bayou defeated Christ's Church Academy, 1-0, in their region quarterfinal.

At Fleming Island's boys regional, with the score knotted 2-2 at the 7:15 mark of the second half, Gulf Breeze gained possession when Fleming Island’s Josh Gosselin sent a shot just a foot wide of the goal and over the end line from 20 yards out. Dolphins' goalie Samuel Thomas punted the ball to the Golden Eagles’ side of the field, where it was played into the box by Dolphins midfielder Dillon Spence. A battle for possession ensued, with the ball ricocheting off two players toward Noury on the left side of the box. The senior, one of North Florida’s top scorers with 28 goals entering the game, sent a spinning drive toward the right corner of the goal. Fleming Island goaltender Carson Snyder was able to get one hand on the ball but could not prevent it from trickling across the goal line, giving Gulf Breeze a 3-2 lead with 6:44 remaining.

The Golden Eagles struck first, with just five minutes off the clock, when Fleming Island right winger Jonathan Figueroa’s throw-in from the right sideline was right on target to Jackson Morgan, who struck a pass to Brooks Viner in front of Dolphins fullback Jett Crowder at the top of the box. Shielding the ball from Crowder, Viner found enough space to strike the ball cleanly and rolled a right-footer past Thomas.

Nine minutes later, a disputed foul call at midfield led to a long free kick for Gulf Breeze’s Crowder.  On a corner kick, Gulf Breeze senior Matthew Beam was able to get a foot on the ball from point blank range and kicked it past Snyder to tie the game at one apiece.

An unlucky carom gave the Dolphins a chance to take the lead with a scramble in front of Fleming Island's goal getting Gulf Breeze a penalty kick with officials citing a handball on Fleming Island's Brady Digman. 

“I think I saw the same thing everybody saw,” Dailey said. “The ball was on Digman’s chest. When he came up he had a red ribbon, like a cherry, on his chest. Plus, the way I understand the rule is, the hand ball has to be an advantage. When we are clearing the ball out of the box, there is no advantage [when the ball is blocked from leaving the box], so I was stunned that that was called.”

With 45 seconds left in the half, a Viner corner kick was headed off the cross bar by Janda, leaving Fleming Island with a 2-1 deficit at halftime.
In the second half, Nathan Mehler drilled a free kick into the box from 40 yards away. A scrum ensued before left winger Jackson Morgan, a high jumper on the Golden Eagles track team, rose above two defenders and headed the ball past Thomas to tie the score 2-2 at the 31:20 mark.

“We were getting chances, we ran a lot, and it was just a matter of time, and whether it came in regulation or in overtime I felt like we were going to get that other goal,” Dailey said.