Answering Back

One Week Later

A week earlier, Catawba Ridge had Boiling Springs on the ropes before giving up 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter of a 34-30 heartbreaker, a game where Colten McCauley (#81) torched that secondary for 218 yards receiving and it still wasn't enough. The Copperheads came home to Westwood at 1-2, looking to turn a promising performance into an actual result.

Rain clouds drifted toward the stadium in the half hour before kickoff, threatening no more than a sprinkle through the first quarter. Catawba Ridge took the field in all-black uniforms.

Westwood won the toss and deferred.

Fast, and Then Faster

Catawba Ridge's opening drive never blinked. Facing 4th and 3 near midfield, quarterback Will Gambrill (#12) found Calvin Rocheleau (#5) on a slant across the middle that turned into a house call, PAT good, 7-0 CR, with 9:38 left in the first.

Westwood never found a rhythm. A sack from Noah Burt (#44) forced a three and out on the first possession, and CR needed just one play from the Westwood 48 to make it hurt, a 5-yard touchdown completion to Brady Pezold (#80). 14-0. Another Westwood three and out, this one nearly ending in a blocked punt, handed Catawba Ridge the ball at their own 40, and two plays later, Rocheleau (#5) hauled in his second touchdown of the night. 21-0, and the first quarter hadn't even finished.

Every Answer, Twice Over

A dropped third down pass finally slowed a Catawba Ridge drive, but only enough to force a field goal. 24-0. Westwood found its first real footing of the night on the ensuing possession, a first down, then a gutsy 4th and 1 attempt from their own 41. Catawba Ridge was flagged for a face mask that kept the drive alive, but the defense made up for it two plays later with a big sack, forcing Westwood to punt anyway.

Catawba Ridge answered adversity with its most dramatic sequence of the half: back to back bad snaps buried the offense at 3rd and 30 from their own 34, before a 48-yard connection to McCauley (#81) flipped the field entirely, and the very next play, McCauley (#81) hauled in the touchdown. 31-0. Westwood tried to answer late, but Lucas McCauley (#10) stepped in front of a pass in the end zone with 10 seconds left in the half to slam the door.

The Play That Said It All

Westwood's best drive of the night, a methodical march to their own 45, ended the way most of their possessions did: a turnover, this one an interception by Isaiah Revell, his third of the season, who returned it 40 yards and looked like he had a pick six before stepping out of bounds at the 8. One play later, Boston Halpin (#22) punched it in. 38-0, and Westwood was already onto its second quarterback of the night after a fumble on the previous series.

Then came the play that summed up the whole night. Chasing the loose ball from the fumble recovery, Logan Adams (#2) coughed it up again near the goal line, but it rolled into the end zone, where McCauley (#81) fell on it for another Catawba Ridge touchdown. 45-0. Even the mistakes were bouncing Catawba Ridge's way, and the margin triggered a running clock for the rest of the game.

Running Out the Clock

With the outcome long decided, both benches emptied. A shanked punt gave Catawba Ridge's reserves a short field, but a high snap and a stalled drive gave it right back. Westwood, playing out the string, finally put together their best field position of the night, methodically working from their own 38 down to a 1st and goal and punching in a late touchdown. 45-7, and the running clock carried the rest of the fourth quarter by in a hurry.

Statement Made

Forty five to seven doesn't leave much to argue about. A week removed from a heartbreaker against Boiling Springs, Catawba Ridge answered with total control: three touchdowns before Westwood ran a fourth offensive play that mattered, three takeaways on defense, and a fumble that somehow still ended up in the end zone for six.

Head coach Zac Lendyak praised the effort his team has continued to put in all season, crediting nights like this one to the work the boys have kept putting in even when the results hadn't shown up yet. His message going forward was simple: keep it up, and the results will keep turning their way as the season goes on.