Rockets survive back-and-forth game in OT

In a game that was seemingly won and lost a handful of times, it was three Cedar Grove-Belgium High School seniors who stepped up to defend their home soccer turf last Thursday.

Gracie Schmidt, playing with a bad hamstring, found the back of the net in the final minute of overtime to give the Rockets a 4-3 lead that held up against St. Thomas More.

“I thought I took a bit of a too-heavy touch. I thought the keeper was going to come out and she didn’t. I kinda just touched it past her,” Schmidt said.

It was her second clutch goal of the match. Trailing, 2-1, a charging Schmidt took a cross from senior Kami Horn with about 90 seconds left to play and scored.

“That one I was really scared because I didn’t know what we were going to do. Kami played a great ball. It was really just having to touch it in,” she said.

Horn had a goal and two assists. Arden Getchman had a goal and one assist. Carissa Konzak had an assist.

The Rockets trailed 1-0 from the 15th minute to the 47th minute after a defender kicked the ball from the outside back toward the middle. The Cavaliers took advantage and scored.

Horn tied the game when she flew down the left side and fired past the keeper into the back of the net.

The Cavaliers scored in the 78th minute before Schmidt answered a minute later.

“It’s just overwhelming and it’s stressful in the moment. We kept our composure and it worked out. We came out on top,” Horn said of the game.

In overtime, Getschman scored in the 82nd minute off a rebound that hit the crossbar. The Cavaliers answered 12 seconds later before Schmidt put the game on ice.

“Oh my gosh, it’s unbelievable,” coach Zac Garza said.

“I think we needed that. We haven’t had many moments this year where we’ve really been able to dig in and have those clutch plays.”

He praised Schmidt for her grit.

“That’s what she gives you. She’s a game-changer just like Arden and Kami and so many of these other players. When we’re on, we’re on and we look so good,” he said.

New Berlin Eisenhower last Saturday beat the Rockets, 5-0, in a regional final in New Berlin. The Lions scored a goal early and on a couple of uncharacteristic long balls, Garza said.

That stopped the Rockets’ streak of eight regional titles in a row. Seven were in Division 4 before being bumped to Division 3.

The Rockets finished the season 14-6-2.