Kennedy Catholic Loses in Dramatic Overtime Match

Nope. Brooke Burckhardt cannot tell a lie.     

The Orchard Farm High School forward thought her team was done after took a one-goal lead with just 2:09 left in Saturday's Class 1 quarterfinal soccer match at Bob Goodwin Field.    

"To be honest, I started crying," Burckhardt, a junior, said. "I figured it was all over."

Her teammate, Alexis Robbers, had other ideas. The Eagles' junior sniper scored on a penalty kick 30 seconds later to send the match into overtime.

Burckhardt took over from there. Given a new life, she converted on a partial breakaway 3:49 into the extra session to give the Eagles a heart-stopping, history-making 4-3 triumph.   

Orchard Farm (17-7) advances to the state semifinals where it will face John Burroughs or St. Vincent of Perryville on Friday at 11 a.m. at the Anheuser-Busch Soccer Park in Fenton. The winner will advance to the championship game on Saturday.   

This never-say-die group becomes the first athletic team in the 52-year history of the St. Charles County school to reach the Final Four.   

"I can't believe it, it's so awesome," said Robbers, who was still shaking five minutes after the match. "It's hard to describe how great this feels."   

Orchard Farm coach Brandon Cox was also on Cloud Nine.   

"It was a great game; it went back and forth the whole time," he said. "It could have easily gone either way. I think the soccer gods were looking down on us."   

The incredible finish will likely go down as the biggest moment in the school's athletic history.   

"It's going to take awhile for this to sink in," said Burckhardt. "I still don't believe it."   

Orchard Farm couldn't have found a more thrilling way to reach the state tournament.   

The Celts (12-11) appeared Fenton-bound when sophomore Maddie Marchetto scored with 129 seconds left in regulation.   

But the goal seemed to lite a spark under Robbers, who quickly picked up a loose ball in the midfield and muscled her way into the box. She was immediately knocked down by two JFK players, necessitating a penalty shot. Robbers calmly put the ball into the right side of the net for her  second goal of the game and her team-leading 29th of the season.   

"Big players have a tendency to find a goal when it's time to score," said Cox. "She's playing with an ankle injury and at the time she was pretty much out of juice. But she found a way to get us into overtime."   

Robbers' goal gave the Eagles a much-needed shot of momentum heading into the OT.   

"I had a feeling that once it got to overtime, we were going to score pretty quickly," said Liston, who recorded her 20th assist of the season on the game-winner.   

The play began with Liston picking up a loose ball and eluding a pair of defenders.   

"I had some space," Liston said. "Dribbled a little bit, got nervous, and sent it up to Brooke hoping she could take care of it—and she did."   

Burckhardt broke free alone along the right wing and sent a low shot that just eluded the outstretched fingertips of JFK goalie Alyssa Mangan.  

The tally sent the players into a celebratory dogpile in the middle of the field.   

"This is a moment that I'll always remember," said Robbers. "Even when I'm 40 years old, I'll never forget this day."  

The two teams battled tooth-and-nail throughout the contest. Orchard Farm took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Burckhardt in the 19th minute. JFK answered four minutes later as freshman Alexandra Donahue scored the first of her two goals.   

The hosts took a 2-1 advantage on another goal by Donahue two minutes into the second half. Robbers needed just 43 seconds to tie it. The blond bomber beat Manager with a perfectly-placed long, twisting drive from 36 yards away.   

Orchard Farm sophomore keeper Abby Gruendler made several fine saves to keep the game tied before the Celts scored the apparent winner with 2:09 remaining.   

Then, suddenly, the Eagles snapped to life.   

"They really pushed and played hard the entire game," said Cox. "They (JFK) punched us and we punched back.   

JFK coach Tom Rapp was pleased his club's effort. He said the two teams couldn't be more evenly matched.   

"We did everything we could to win," he said. "They left it all out on the field. I thought they won it—we didn't lose it."    

Orchard Farm defenders Sareen Dargahi and Casey Mann did an excellent job keeping the high-powered Celts offense in check, and Meghan Boschert and Laurel Colemire helped out up front.   

"This is a great moment for these girls and great moment for our school," said Cox. "And we're hoping there will be a few more of these type moments down the road."