High school girls soccer: Mountain Ridge takes advantage of slippery conditions in big win over Copper Hills

Mountain Ridge proved Tuesday that sometimes sticking to just the basics is all you need in big games. After all, the Sentinels stand tied (with an 11-1 record) with rival Herriman atop Region 2.

Tuesday presented a roadblock in the Sentinels’ path to a potential region title as they traveled to West Jordan to take on Copper Hills. The Grizzlies were also in the region title hunt, and a win over Mountain Ridge would’ve kept them alive in the race.

With major region implications on the line, Mountain Ridge made clean work of Copper Hills 3-0.

“They played a full 80 minutes,” said Mountain Ridge head coach Mark Osborne. “They played from the first whistle to the very end. Nobody gave up, nobody let up and it didn’t matter if it was a sub going in for a couple minutes, every single player stepped in and played their role.”

After a close 0-0 halftime score, Mountain Ridge knew it had to wake up. The Sentinels still played well in the first half and didn’t give up many shots on goal. But it ended the half on a close call as Copper Hills’ leading scorer Camila Palafox sailed a shot narrowly over the top crossbar just seconds before the end of the half.

So, in the second half Mountain Ridge returned to its pregame message of, “follow the shot.”

With a wet and rainy afternoon, Osborne knew the slippery conditions may present opportunities and emphasized following shots before the game.

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It didn’t take long in the second half for Mountain Ridge to capitalize on his counsel. In the 46th minute, sophomore forward Kelsey Goodwin took advantage of a ball that slipped away from Copper Hills keeper Cambri Robinson and placed it in the back of the net.

Then in the 62nd minute, Kaislee Johnson ricocheted a ball into the goal after an initial diving save from Robinson. The goal was Johnson’s 18th of the season which is the third highest in 6A.

“It was super important (to follow our shots) because, especially today when the grass was wet, the ball was slippery,” Johnson said. “In our before the game talk, we just had it established that we have to follow our shot and I’m just super proud of our offense for taking advantage.”

The scoring didn’t stop there as the second half onslaught finished with a goal from freshman centerback Stella Morrison in the 67th minute. It was the first goal of Morrison’s high school career.

It was a strong defensive showing from Mountain Ridge, holding 6A’s leading scorer in Copper Hills’ Palafox scoreless. In just Copper Hills’ last three games Palafox totaled 10 goals.

“We really put a focus on stopping her and trying not to let her even get the ball,” Osborne said. “That was part of our game plan, to try to have a defender in front of her and behind her to stop her from even having that opportunity because she’s a lethal weapon. The defense did their job. They covered and it didn’t matter who we put in, they all stepped up and did a really good job.”

Of course, Mountain Ridge needs to win its last two games against Cedar Valley and Salt Lake Academy to clinch at least a share of the Region 2 title. Copper Hills also hosts Herriman on Thursday, which could either keep the Sentinels and Mustangs tied, or give Sentinels full control of Region 2.