Catawba Ridge Football · Game 7, 2026
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An overcast sky and temperatures in the low 70s, dropping to about 66 by the final whistle, made for a near perfect night of football at Catawba Ridge. The Copperheads took the field in all black with gold helmets, and pops of pink lined both sidelines for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Catawba Ridge (3-3, and a perfect 3-0 at home) hosted NAFO (1-6) in a region game. The Copperheads won the toss and elected to receive.
It did not start the way Catawba Ridge wanted. A kickoff return to the 35 and a quick screen to the left produced a first down, but a screen to the right was fumbled and recovered by the Falcons, who took over at the Catawba Ridge 34.
Nation Ford converted a fourth and 3 with a deep crossing route down to the 15, and a pass interference call in the end zone moved the ball to the 10. A dead ball penalty on the defense set up third and 1, and then the Copperheads dug in. A run up the middle was stuffed, the Falcons tried it again on fourth down and were stuffed a second time, and Catawba Ridge took over on downs at its own 7.
The relief was short lived. On the first play from the 7, a heavy rush got in the quarterback's face and the pass was intercepted, giving NAFO the ball at the 10. A pass interference penalty on first down moved the Falcons closer, and on second and goal a misdirection run to the left, cut back to the right, found the end zone. 7-0 NAFO.
Catawba Ridge answered. Tyler Robinson (#1) returned the ensuing kickoff to almost midfield, and though that drive ended in a three and out, NAFO went three and out on its next possession too, and a short punt that took a good roll left Catawba Ridge at its own 22.
From the 22, a couple of quick first downs got the Copperheads to midfield, and a short pass to Calvin Rocheleau (#5) turned into a gain all the way to the 15. Another completion to Rocheleau (#5) set up first and goal at the 4, and after a run to the 1, Boston Halpin (#22) punched it in on second down. PAT good, 7-7 with 1:27 left in the first.
A personal foul on the Falcons on the next kickoff pinned them at their own 10. Two quick incompletions brought up third and long, and with the quarterback pressured in his own end zone he threw one up, and Lucas McCauley (#10) came down with the interception. First and 10 at the NAFO 25, and one quick strike to Colten McCauley (#81) later, Catawba Ridge had its first lead of the night, 14-7.
Nation Ford managed a short completion on third down but had to punt, and with Catawba Ridge having used its first timeout, the Falcons tried a fake punt that fell incomplete. Catawba Ridge took over at the NAFO 22, and on third down Colten McCauley (#81) caught a pass in the end zone for another touchdown, 21-7.
A big kick return got the Falcons to the Catawba Ridge 45, and a double flea flicker produced a first down at the 30, but the drive stalled there. Pressure in the backfield forced a fluttering incompletion on fourth down, and Nation Ford turned it over on downs.
McCauley (#81) then took over the game. A big gain on a screen, a holding penalty that backed the Copperheads up, and another big gain two plays later carried Catawba Ridge to the Nation Ford 40. On third and 4, the Falcons were flagged for having 12 men on the field, giving Catawba Ridge a first down, and a couple of runs up the middle by Boston Halpin (#22) set up first and goal at the 3. Halpin (#22) punched that one in too, 28-7.
The Falcons strung together a couple of first downs before a big sack on third down ended the drive and forced another punt, with 2:13 left in the half and Catawba Ridge using its second timeout. With 30 seconds to go, Catawba Ridge hit Calvin Rocheleau (#5) for a touchdown pass, 35-7 with 29 seconds left in the half.
Nation Ford wasn't done before the break. After the touchback, a double pass on first down moved the Falcons to the Catawba Ridge 41 with 20.3 seconds left, a roughing the passer penalty kept the drive alive and moved the ball to the 26, and with 4.2 seconds on the clock the Falcons made the field goal. 35-10 at halftime.
A mishit kickoff to start the second half went only about 10 yards and was recovered by the Falcons, who had good field position but did nothing with it. No gain on first down, minimal gain on second, and on third and long a bad snap was recovered by the Copperheads at the NAFO 40.
A couple of medium gains and an incompletion on third down set up fourth and 1 from the 31, and Colten McCauley (#81) came through again, this time up the sideline for a touchdown, his third of the night. 42-10 with 7:56 left in the third.
Sheldon Erickson (#4) was in on the stop as the kickoff return came out to the 25, and from there things went backwards for Nation Ford. A screen pass picked up one first down, but a run stuffed for a loss of two, a sack for a loss of about eight and an incompletion on third and 20 forced a punt, which Calvin Rocheleau (#5) returned to the Catawba Ridge 49.
Neither offense found much rhythm after that. A string of penalties on both teams turned the next Copperhead drive into a three and out, and on a long fourth and 20 Catawba Ridge rolled out the punter to flip the field, leaving NAFO at its own 35. The Falcons went three and out, Catawba Ridge got the ball back and went three and out as well, and the third quarter ended 42-10 with Nation Ford set to start the fourth at its own 41.
Nation Ford opened the fourth with a first down and then nearly threw an interception, but two Copperhead defenders ended up fighting each other for the ball and neither came down with it. A false start on fourth down pushed the Falcons back five yards, but a pass interference call gave them a first down anyway, and on the next play NAFO's #11 caught a 24-yard touchdown pass. 42-17 after the PAT with 8:47 to go.
The Falcons tried an onside kick, and Boston Halpin (#22) recovered it at the 50. Catawba Ridge ran the ball and worked the clock, and when the drive stalled a field goal pushed the lead to 45-17 with 4:49 to go.
Nation Ford answered once more. On first and 10 after the touchback, #2 found #11 on a deep crossing route and he took it all the way, but the two point try failed, 45-23. The Falcons tried another onside kick, and this time Sheldon Erickson (#4) recovered it for Catawba Ridge, which ran out the clock.
Catawba Ridge trailed 7-0 after turning it over on its first two possessions, then scored 35 straight points and forced five Nation Ford turnovers (an interception, a recovered bad snap and three turnovers on downs) on the way to a 45-23 win. Colten McCauley (#81) finished with three touchdowns, Boston Halpin (#22) added two on the ground, and Calvin Rocheleau (#5) caught one.
The Copperheads are now 4-3 overall, 2-1 in region play and a perfect 4-0 at home.
Every photo from the game, in order,