In the first of possibly three matchups this season between Fort Mill boys’ soccer powerhouses, Catawba Ridge earned the first victory.
The Copperheads earned a 1-1 (4-2) victory over crosstown rival Nation Ford Tuesday night at The Pit after penalty kicks.
Freshman Declan Hogan’s 13th-minute strike put Catawba Ridge ahead for the majority of regulation before Nation Ford’s Alec Lindenberg equalized midway through the second half.
Both teams traded blows in the two five-minute overtime periods, but the game always looked destined to be settled by a penalty kick shootout.
Seniors Jeremy White, Jermaine Smith, Joshua Zawlocki, and Camden Gifford all scored in the shootout for the Copperheads, while goalkeeper Liam Prendergast pulled off a diving save.
Trailing 3-2 in the shootout, Nation Ford defender Sean Marolivts attempted a Panenka chip shot, but the ball smacked the crossbar. Gifford then stepped up with the chance to seal the win and coolly rolled the ball past Nation Ford goalkeeper JJ Podlasek.
Catawba Ridge head coach Phillip McCarter said he believed both teams were the top two teams in the state. While the Copperheads will travel to Nation Ford for a regular season rematch on April 17, both McCarter and Nation Ford head coach Kenny Halas believe the two squads will square off yet again at some point in the Class AAAAA D-2 playoffs.
“We’re gonna meet again,” McCarter said. “You could consider it a best of three.”
“We think this is probably a three-part series,” Halas added. “This is just Game One. This is a house money game. They’ve still got to come to our place.”
Catawba Ridge (8-2, 4-0 Region 3-5A) controlled most of the possession and chances in the first half.
In the opening few minutes, Gifford played Smith into space at the near post, but a Nation Ford defender shepherded the ball out of danger before Smith could get a shot off.
The Copperheads took the lead in the 13th minute. Hogan picked up a loose ball near the right corner of the Nation Ford penalty area and unleashed a hard, right-footed shot that was always destined for the upper-left corner.
Up 1-0, Catawba Ridge pushed the envelope. Five minutes later, Smith’s pass found Gifford from 12 yards out, but Gifford’s reaction shot couldn’t beat Podlasek. White floated in a 27th-minute free-kick toward the back post, but defender Dawson Forrest couldn’t keep his side-footed shot under the crossbar.
Nation Ford’s Guillermo Hernandez finally earned a shot on target for the Falcons in the 29th minute. The Falcons (10-3, 2-1 Region 3-5A) pushed hard in the final 10 minutes of the first half, earning a 40th-minute corner from the far side. Senior Jake Miles did well to meet the cross at the back post, but Catawba Ridge defender Ryan Getz deflected Miles’ header off the line and out of danger.
The Copperheads pushed for their second goal after the halftime break. White burst into the Nation Ford penalty box on a solo run, earning a free kick on the edge of the area for Zawlocki. Zawlocki’s kick skirted under the wall, Podlasek spilled the initial shot, and the ball fell to Dawson Forrest, who was able to get off a rebound shot, but the effort was deflected and smacked the outside of the post.
Nation Ford finally equalized in the 63rd minute, with Lindenberg finishing off a cross from the left wing.
Halas said tonight’s game was the sixth time the team had gone to overtime so far this year.
“When it gets to that, it’s 50/50,” he said. “We’ve just got to stick to what we’re doing. We played exactly how we want to play tonight. I don’t think they had too many chances in the second half. We were a little out of whack in the first half, and we fixed it. I’m really proud of the guys tonight.”
McCarter said his team is trained to gut out five-minute spurts of high-octane soccer like overtime. He said he told his team to remain mentally focused on not making any errors. The team practiced a round of several penalties during Monday’s practice, with Prendergast making three saves. This is the first time Catawba Ridge has faced a shootout in live action so far this year.
“I told (Liam), you just need to remember what you did yesterday,” McCarter said. “He was really mentally tough.”
Both teams next play region opponents 7 p.m. Friday. Nation Ford will host Clover, while Catawba Ridge travels to Rock Hill.
