Lightning had the final say Thursday night in a boys soccer matchup between Ryle and Covington Catholic, but the storm that mattered most came before it.
Though the match ended early with 29:33 remaining at C.R. Borland Stadium in Union, No. 20 Ryle was credited with a 2-1 victory over No. 12 CovCath, rallying from a halftime deficit to hand the Colonels their first 9th Region loss since Sept. 7, 2024.
As big as the win was, Ryle head coach Stephen Collins sees it more as a sign of where his team is headed and another step toward where they want to be when the games carry much greater stakes.
The meeting had no seeding implications and didn’t decide either team’s season. Eventually, though, the matchup could look much different, with a region championship and a trip to the state tournament on the line.
For now, the victory provided an early glimpse of what the Raiders can be against the two-time defending 9th Region champions.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do, and we’ve got to get to the point of putting a whole game together if we want to do this again because they’re the team to beat in this region and they’re the champs,” Collins said. “When it comes to the tournament, they’re who you need to knock out. It was nice to get this win because it gives the boys confidence, but as a team and staff, we have to keep getting better because we know they’re going to.”
Collins knows there is plenty to improve after what amounted to a tale of two halves — or, more accurately, one half and about 10 1/2 minutes.
The Colonels controlled much of the first half and struck in the 28th minute when junior Max Holocher found junior Ben Pfeiffer, who put CovCath ahead 1-0.
Covington Catholic finished the first half with three shots, two on goal, while Ryle managed just one shot and none on goal.
Within the first 11 minutes of the second half, the Raiders registered three shots, all on goal, and two found the back of the net.
“First half, I thought we played well,” Covington Catholic head coach Jeremy Robertson said. “I wouldn’t say we dominated the game, but I felt like we had probably about 70 or 80 percent of the ball. They had two shots, two goals, and that’s how soccer works sometimes.”
Ryle had to find a way past senior goalkeeper Booker Gifford, an All-9th Region second-team selection last season and an All-State Tournament Team member. Covington Catholic had entered the night with four shutouts this season, including three against region opponents.
But the Raiders found their chances.
“You can’t prepare for him,” Collins said. “We’ve been preaching to our guys you’re going to win games getting shots off of rebounds, crosses and being in the right place. Today, you get a guy in the right place and it pays off.”
Senior Grant McCoy got the comeback started in the 46th minute.
As Gifford came out to slide for the ball, McCoy found himself in the right place, collected the loose ball and slipped it past the goalkeeper for his first goal of the season.
“I saw Danny (Harding) chasing the center back, so I just followed him,” McCoy said. “It popped open and I just slipped it past the keeper. That’s the first one, and it felt good.”
Five minutes later, the Raiders struck again.
After Gifford made a save, the ball remained up for grabs, and Harding got there first. He finished the opportunity in the 51st minute to give Ryle a 2-1 lead and what proved to be the game-winning goal.
Then the weather arrived.
Moments after Harding’s goal, lightning forced a stoppage and eventually brought the match to an early end. The storm may have ended the night, but it couldn’t change the result.
Covington Catholic entered with a 26-0-3 record against region opponents since their last loss in September 2024.
Still, the season is young, and Robertson knows his team has time to learn from it.
“It’s a learning process,” Robertson said. “We’ve got a lot of younger guys, and we only started, I believe, two seniors. There’s definitely some things to take and learn.”
The Colonels fall to 4-1-3, while Ryle improves to 7-2.
MORE PHOTOS: Provided by Charles Bolton
RAIDERS 2, COLONELS 1
RYLE — 0-2 — 2
COVINGTON CATHOLIC — 1-0 — 1
Game Stats
Goals: (R) McCoy 46′, Harding 51′ (CC) Pfeiffer
Assists: (CC) Holocher
Shots (On Goal): Ryle 4(3), Covington Catholic 6(3)
Saves: Ryle 2 (Stropko), Covington Catholic 1 (Gifford)
Corner Kicks: Ryle 1, Covington Catholic 1
Fouls: Ryle 9, Covington Catholic 10
Offsides: Ryle 0, Covington Catholic 2
Records: Ryle 7-2, Covington Catholic 4-1-3
