By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
HATTIESBURG – Sacred Heart battled from behind to force an overtime outcome, but ultimately failed in a soccer showdown.
The Crusaders and St. Stanislaus played to a 1-1 tie after 80 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes of overtime, but the Rockachaws prevailed in the penalty kick shootout 4-3 to come away with the victory Friday night at Klein Field.
With the win, St. Stanislaus (10-3-1 overall, 7-0 region) all but clinched the Region 8-I championship and the top seed heading into the Class I playoffs. Sacred Heart (8-3-1, 5-2) appears locked in as the No. 2 seed heading into the postseason.
“It’s just about coming in every day and working on the next thing,” said Sacred Heart coach Kevin Treminio. “We all know what’s going to come down the road, and I learned a lot today, about our team and about theirs, and I’m ready for the next one.”
The Crusaders and Rockachaws played a tight, defensive struggle in which scoring opportunities came grudgingly.
St. Stanislaus had the better of play in the first half, and well into the second half, but Sacred Heart came on late, and it was the Crusaders who had the best chances down the stretch.
Sacred Heart actually started strong, pushing the pace in the first five minutes and got two corner kicks resulting in two shots in the first three minutes of play.
But those would be the only corners of the game for the Crusaders, who got pushed off the ball by the bigger, more experienced Rockachaws.
“That’s going to be the case in most games,” said Treminio. “We’re a really young team; we only have three seniors, the rest are freshman or sophomores. But either way, we’re still going to go at teams, no matter what.”
Sacred Heart did not have a shot of any kind the rest of the first half, but the Crusaders’ back line played well all night, with one notable exception.
“I think we’ve got one of the best center back duos in the state,” said junior fullback Henry Newton. “We’re strong in the back, and super confident. We know we’re good, even with mistakes like we had tonight.
“Things like that happen sometimes when you play like we do. It’s a risky way to play.”
The Crusaders thought they had a goal in the 30th minute, when senior Mateo Rouhbakhsh found the back of the net only to be called for offside, nullifying the shot and the goal.
Rockachaw junior Oren Doxey found a chink in the Crusaders’ armor in the 15th minute, bombing a long-range shot that Crusader senior goal-keeper Hayes Burks had to leap high to save.
But Burks was out of position in the 36th minute when Doxey got a gift from the Crusaders, a turnover that resulted in an unassisted goal on a high floater 30 from yards out.
“(Hayes) was supporting me, and it was just a tough touch, and Hayes was just out of position,” said Newton. “I think we’re a better team than they are; we’ve just got to put away our chances when they come.”
St. Stanislaus nearly added to its lead early in the second half, challenging Burks with two good looks on goal in the first four minutes of the period.
However, an eight-minute stoppage midway through the second half seemed to work to Sacred Heart’s advantage. The delay was caused when a player for St. Stanislaus was checked out by a physician as part of a concussion protocol.
Once play resumed in the 60th minute, the Crusaders committed more players forward and seemed to have more pep in their step.
“We switched to a three-back set,” said freshman Elliott Boyette, “We set it up where there was a top striker and a striker underneath, and the striker underneath gets the ball, and he turns and looks for the wings or the other striker at the very top.”
In the 72nd minute, the Crusaders wanted a penalty kick after Rouhbakhsh appeared to be tripped in the 18-yard box while getting n errant shot off, but no call was made.
Sacred Heart didn’t need any help, however, six minutes later, when Rouhbakhsh got free down the left sideline and fired a perfect cross to Boyette, who slammed home the game-tying goal from point-blank range.
“It was a good cross; all I had to do was get a foot on it and it went in,” said Boyette. “I think we had some good chances, but we were unlucky on a few.”
Sacred Heart had the best scoring chance in overtime, in the 96th minute, when senior Logan Anderson got a good shot from 15 yards out that Rockachaw freshman keeper Mason Graham knocked away, and Rouhbakhsh was wide on the rebound.
Defensively, the Crusaders did not allow St. Stanislaus a shot in the final 20 minutes of regulation, and only two ineffectual shots in the overtime periods.
“We talked about our defensive shape for 10 minutes before the game,” said Treminio. “My worry wasn’t’ about defense, it was on the ball, like always.
“I think they executed everything we worked on quite well. It’s just sometimes you’ve got to have a little bit of luck, and they had that on their goal.”
Sacred Heart finished with nine shots overall, just two on goal, while the Rockachaws had 12 shots in all, getting six on net.
In the shootout, Sacred Heart made its first three shots, from Rouhbakhsh, Newton and junior Ethan Haigler, but sophomore Grayson Smith was high with his shot and Graham knocked away sophomore Austin Nguyen’s attempt.
Freshman Bennett Favret skied the second of St. Stanislaus’ attempts, but were good on the other four, with sophomore Karson Benigno getting the game-winner for the Rockashaws.
Sacred Heart is scheduled to host Resurrection on Tuesday, but that is expected to be postponed due to the severe cold weather that is forecast for early next week.
