Corinth Holders girls soccer erupts late to top Cleveland

Despite her club’s strong overall record and lofty status in the Two Rivers 3A Conference, Corinth Holders girls soccer coach Alison Vetterl is concerned that her club’s penchant for slow starts could be detrimental to the Pirates’ potential success come the postseason.

During the early portion of the second half of Wednesday’s home meeting with league rival Cleveland, an exasperated Vetterl stood on the sidelines with both arms behind her neck as the Pirates held on to a slim one-goal cushion.

Eventually, Corinth Holders was able to pull away with four goals over the final 34 minutes to outlast the Rams by a 7-2 margin, thanks in part to a hat trick from sophomore forward Carolina Solis.

“For some reason, it takes us awhile to get worked up,” said Vetterl, whose squad remained in first place in the Two Rivers at 4-0 to go with an 11-2-1 overall mark. “We need to step it up because, at some point, a team is going to take advantage of that against us. We have to be more consistent – that is something we have been stressing.”

Before the Pirates’ late surge, Cleveland (4-6-1, 2-2) had been able to stay close by neutralizing Corinth Holders’ up-front speed, mainly by inducing a string of offsides infractions.

The Rams never led but were within one goal at 3-2 after Anna Ford found the back of the net just 35 ticks into the second half.

Turning point

After Cleveland had tightened up the score early in the second half, the Pirates were able to spring the speedy Solis on a through ball, but she was immediately engaged by Rams goalkeeper Bailey Curtis. Somehow, Solis was able to sidestep Curtis before sending the ball into an open net – and push Corinth Holders ahead 4-2.

Three to know

Carolina Solis, Corinth Holders: The Pirates’ high-scoring 10th grader tacked on three more goals to her season total, all of which came in the second half.

Anna Ford, Cleveland: The Rams’ forward kept her team within striking distance with a pair of markers.

Alexis Ayers, Corinth Holders: Ayers is a hybrid defender who has also seen time at midfield this season for the Pirates. Not only is she a shutdown performer on defense, but Ayers also has the speed and dribbling skills to quickly transition the ball toward midfield.

What worked

With the Pirates unable to find creative space up front, they turned to more unconventional ways to score, including a pair of goals off corner kicks. Erica Boswell, who is usually a midfielder, moved up on the corners and used her 5-foot-9 size to score twice, one of which came off a header.

“I just started doing that,” Boswell said of her aggression on corners. “That’s because I am one of the tallest girls on the team. But these were the first two goals I have scored off corners.”

Said Vetterl: “We’ve been working on that in practice the last week or so. When we get the ball to (Boswell), she is very good in the air. We wanted to get her in there on the (opposing) keeper. It helped us be able to pull away a bit.’’

They said it

“I was happy with the way we battled,” said Cleveland coach Marissa Wingate, a former soccer standout at Catawba College. “We had the heart, but we got tired in the end. It’s a frustrating loss. Corinth Holders is a great team, and things didn’t go our way. (The Pirates’) speed is a huge factor. But we are definitely a better team than our record shows. We have played a hard schedule, and we have been in every game. We just seem to have trouble finding the net.”

By the numbers

1: Corinth Holders has picked up a single conference championship in school history, and that came last season in the Two Rivers. The Pirates are well on their way toward a second crown, but plenty of challenges await as the team enters the second cycle of conference play.

“To me, it seems like we are working together a lot better this year,” Boswell said.

4: The Pirates, though currently atop the league, have only four seniors and are paced by a strong sophomore class that features Ayers, Solis and Boswell, among others. Veteran defenders Maddy Gladwell and Mackenzie Jenkins are among the upperclassmen on Corinth Holders’ roster.

29: An instant star since she arrived on campus as a ninth-grader, Solis now has 29 goals for the season after Wednesday’s hat trick.

12: One of the aspects of the contest that irritated Vetterl the most was her squad’s dozen offsides calls.

9: The number of shutouts the Pirates have earned this spring – out of just 14 matches.

This story was originally published April 13, 2016 at 10:57 PM with the headline "Corinth Holders girls soccer erupts late to top Cleveland."