ThatÂ’s something first-year member Holly Springs found out the hard way on Wednesday as its 2-0 lead disintegrated into a 3-2 home loss to Panther Creek (2-3, 2-1).

The Golden Hawks (2-1-1, 2-1-1), competing in their first year in the Tri-Nine after finishing the 2009 season tops in the Greater Neuse Conference, gave up all three Catamount goals during a drizzly second half – the last one coming with 1:05 remaining that prevented overtime.

Holly Springs was moving the ball across midfield when an errant pass created a counterattack for Panther Creek. With all but one Hawk defender out of position, junior Ashley Clark sprinted to the box before laying it back to a wide-open sophomore Asyia Mitchell.

“We knew we had the defense beat, so we took them,” Clark said.

MitchellÂ’s shot from the top of the penalty box was true, and the Catamount comeback was complete.

“We just gave it our all, which is what [first-year coach Leigh] Haase,” Mitchell said. “It was all my teammate, I just did the ending product. She went through all those people and gave me the perfect ball.”

Holly Springs tried furiously to net a goal in the last minute, but couldnÂ’t get a shot off.

“We were just holding on,” senior Stephanie Bristol said. “The last minute when we got down, we went crazy for the ball but we just have to have that the whole game.”

The speed of Mitchell and Clark made it hard for Holly Springs to hold its 2-0 lead. The two accounted for all three goals and an assist.

“Any team can come back at 2-0,” senior captain Katelyn Noel said. “Coach [David Lanuti] tells us that all the time and that’s what happened here.”

Mitchell scored the CatamountsÂ’ first goal at the 35:57 mark in the second half on a breakaway that drew goalkeeper Nichole Sgherza too far. Mitchell beat her SgherzaÂ’s challenge to put P.C. on the board.

Kim Gardner, a junior, assisted Clark on the tying goal at the 13:31 mark.

“Panther Creek is just a really good team at possessing the ball and I think our defense, all over the field, broke down,” Shelby Riedford, a junior, said.

The Hawks scored the gameÂ’s first goal at the 21:38 mark of the first half on a kick from freshman Kelsey Swanger. Exactly nine minutes later, Bristol stopped a punt by P.C. goalkeeper Kenzie McNeilly and returned fire by lobbing it into the far corner of the net.

Holly Springs is playing without returning 20-goal scorer Rachel Harris this season. Harris, a junior, tore her ACL in the teamÂ’s first scrimmage.