The training session Catawba Ridge boys’ soccer head coach Phillip McCarter runs the most in his team’s practices is a transition from defense to offense.
It’s a demanding session that forces his players to work hard and scan a field quickly to identify outlet passes that push the pace of play and start attacks.
“It helps separate good teams from bad teams, when you know how to handle the transition,” he said.
Catawba Ridge showed plenty of strong transition play in Tuesday night’s 8-0 shutout win over Region 3-4A opponent Lancaster at The Pit.
Senior striker Caden Tull scored a hat-trick, while Josh Zawlocki and James Abramo both chipped in a brace apiece to help Catawba Ridge secure the lopsided victory, while goalkeeper Liam Prendergast and his defense earned the shutout over the Bruins.
With the win, Catawba Ridge improves to 15-2-1 with an 8-0 region record. The Copperheads lead the standings ahead of second-place Indian Land, who is 11-4-1 overall and 4-2 in region. If Catawba Ridge defeats Indian Land on the road, Catawba Ridge will clinch its third-straight region title.
McCarter said there’s plenty of growth for his team to make.
“I told them, the team that wins the state championship won’t be the team we are today,” he said. “Every match, every training session, film session, we need to get better. If we do that, we’ve got a good chance in the playoffs.”
Tull scored twice in the opening nine minutes to put Catawba Ridge firmly on top in the first half.
He benefited from creative assists from his fellow strike partners Joshua White and Abramo to put him in strong positions.
For the opening goal, White corralled a long pass near the Lancaster by-line and zipped in a quick cross to Tull, who was rushing into the box and buried his shot past the Lancaster keeper.
Just seven minutes later, Tull was celebrating again after Abramo found Tull at the top of the Bruins’ penalty box. Tull took two touches to ready himself, then delivered a laser into the top-right corner of the net.
Tull nearly earned a hat-trick within the opening half-hour, but his attempt in the 22nd minute was ruled offside.
Lancaster nearly halved the deficit with a 27th-minute counterattack. Striker Sergio Pavon Reyes dribbled past two Copperheads defenders, but collided with Prendergast. Jeffry Munguia was able to redirect the rebound goalwards, but defender Jeremy White reacted quickly to head the ball away from an empty net and preserve the early shutout.
Abramo later scored in the 35th minute, capping off a half littered with standout individual dribbling and strong chances created. He nearly provided another assist, this time for Jermaine Smith, with a low cross from the near wing in the 33rd minute, but Smith skied his shot over the bar from about 10 yards out.
“We knew it would be special having (Caden Tull, Joshua White, and James Abramo) together,” McCarter said. “They’re still building chemistry, and it gives us a different dimension. They’re very hard to shut down, and very unselfish.”
The second half saw a flurry of Catawba Ridge goals in the opening 20 minutes.
Zawlocki scored within the first minute of the restart, courtesy of a Joshua White cross from the right wing.
Tull completed his hat-trick about 10 minutes later with a curled shot from distance to the far corner. Abramo and Zawlocki both scored each of their second goals within about two minutes of each other.
And Joshua White finally earned a goal of his own with a header from a corner in the 62nd minute.
McCarter praised his midfield for keeping strong possession and creating chances for his strikers.
“Without our midfielders, if they don’t control the game, we don’t get the ball,” he said. “Evan Serkin creates so much, and Zawlocki is worth his weight in gold.”
McCarter said the road to a 4A state championship will be a tough one. Nine of the top 10 teams in the classification are in the Upper State, according to MaxPreps.
Catawba Ridge finishes the region schedule on the road, with match-ups against Indian Land on Friday, April 14 and Northwestern Monday, April 17. The Copperheads will finish the regular season with a non-region game at home against Blythewood April 25. All games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
