It started out as a joke during practice, according to Catawba Ridge girls’ soccer coach Brandon Schmidt.
He brought up the concept of his team having a “dog mentality,” a reference to the Copperheads’ ability to respond quickly to adversity.
As Catawba Ridge enters the heart of the Region 3-4A schedule, everyone’s bought in to the mentality, and the Copperheads are rolling.
Sadie Commerford, Alexa Dubrow, and Ruby Stayduhar all scored Tuesday night to secure a 4-2 win over region rivals Indian Land at The Pit in Fort Mill.
Catawba Ridge proved their bounce-back ability during the win. The visiting Warriors took an early 1-0 lead through Zoie Kempf in the 17th minute, but Indian Land didn’t have long to celebrate.
Commerford rose highest to head home a 20th minute corner to tie the game at 1-1.
“We responded to adversity well with such a young team,” Schmidt said. “Going down a goal early and not giving up, coming right back at them. With how young this team is, the quick response to that is important.”
Commerford added a second goal just seven minutes into the second half when she launched a 30-yard rocket that flew past the Indian Land keeper.
Senior Kinsey Bishop equalized for Indian Land just five minutes later with an audacious chip shot near the top of the penalty box to make it 2-2.
But less than a minute later, Catawba Ridge responded quickly again, this time through Dubrow. She let her 25-yard shot rip, and the effort slipped past the Warrior goalkeeper’s fingertips to hand the Copperheads back a 3-2 lead in the 53rd minute.
Stayduhar nailed the door shut in the 65th minute. She took a pass from a Catawba Ridge corner and released a lofted cross-shot that nestled sweetly into the roof of the net to give the hosts a 4-2 lead.
“We were talking at halftime that we were definitely going to get more shots off at top of the box,” Commerford said. “We have a competitive side. When we get scored on, we try to get it back as fast as we can.”
Catawba Ridge moves to 8-2 overall, 4-0 in the region and has high hopes following last year’s momentous run to the state title game, where the Copperheads narrowly fell to eventual champions James Island.
Since then, Catawba Ridge graduated seven seniors over the offseason, including five starters. Despite losing half of his defense since last year, Schmidt said the Copperheads remain focused on defending their Region 3-4A crown.
The team even drew a dog on the whiteboard to emphasize that “dog mentality,” said Schmidt.
Catawba Ridge next travels to play at South Pointe Tuesday, March 29.
