MOULTRIE — The Colquitt County middle school soccer teams opened their 2007 seasons with victories on Saturday at Tom White Field at Mack Tharpe Stadium.

The middle school girls won two games, beating Lowndes 5-0 and rallying from a 1-0 halftime deficit to defeat Hahira 2-1.

The middle school boys played only Hahira and won 3-1.

The Packers match against Lowndes will be rescheduled.

The middle school Lady Packers were not challenged in their opener, scoring all five goals in the first half and coasting to the easy victory.

But the win over Hahira, which came without two starters who had to leave after the game against Lowndes, was a big one.

Hahira took 1-0 lead into halftime, but Colquitt County tied it up on a beautiful corner kick by Avery Castellow that hit in front of the net, then bounced past the Hahira keeper for the tying goal.

Then, with five minutes left in the match, Colquitt County’s Camille Sellers was tripped in front of the Hahira net.

Lindsey Causey then drilled a shot past the Hahira keeper on the penalty kick for the 2-1 lead the Lady Packers held over the final five minutes.

“That was perfect,” coach Ashley Hill said of Causey’s kick. “She got great placement.”

But it was Castellow’s long, strong corner that put the Lady Packers in the position to win it late.

Castellow asked Hill at a recent practice if she could attempt a corner and when she did, she earned the position on the spot.

“She has really come a long way this year,” said Hill, saying she has been the team’s most improved player so far.

Causey scored twice in the victory over Lowndes, including the first goal, with an assist from Lauren Kelshaw. It was all Colquitt County would need.

Kelshaw added the team’s second goal.

Causey made it 3-0 with a goal in the 13th minute. Lacey Webb got the assist.

Webb added the final two goals at the 20 and 24-minute marks.

Jordan Boyd played in the nets in the first half. Natalie Griffin was the second-half keeper.

The middle school girls roster includes Courtney Carnes, Lindsey Causey, Lacey Webb, Laura Hill Bannister, Karlie Brown, Taylor Myers, Madison Turner, Alex Norris, Samantha Allen, Macie Chitty, Jordan Boyd, Jade DeLoache, Avery Castellow, Emily Traylor, Lauren Kelshaw, Jordan Hammack, Catie Statom, Jessie Hester, Natalie Griffin, Brittany Parker, Camille Sellers, Robin Byington and Julie Ann Tyus.

Colquitt County middle school boys coach Ben Marion greeted 54 players at his first tryout and after an intense conditioning period, still had 54 players. None had quit.

“There’s no doubt that if the YMCA and the schools collaborate, each middle school could have a team,” Marion said. “There is that much interest.”

Marion finally did have make cuts twice to get his team down to a manageable size, but none quit after either cut.

“We’ve got a great group to work with,” Marion said after his team’s victory on Saturday. “We’ve got a lot of skilled players.”

His roster includes Carlos Bautista, Brett Holden, George Malagon, Daniel Moreno, Gian Rodriquez, Rich Tyndall, Esequiel Vazquez, Jose Zunun, David Juarez, Hunter White, David Contreras, Fernando Hernandez, Octavio Carranza, Tanner White, Ramon Izila, Jonathan Brown, Daniel Bastos, John Hunter DeMott, Kyle Scott, Will Bannister, Ruben Fabian, Damien Bentley, Marshall Cone and manager Remeil Melvin.

Malagon got the Colquitt County boys first score of the season and Moreno added the second. Both were unassisted.

Holden got the third goal, with an assist going to Hunter White.

Marion said his team played with some jitters the first half.

“But we completely controlled the second half,” he said.

The middle school teams will be back at the stadium on Monday to play Valdosta. The girls will start at 4:30 p.m. The boys will start at about 5:45 p.m.