T.J. Keys scored a hat trick to kick his season total up to 43 and put Rochester safely on its way to Saturday’s semifinals.
“The first half it didn’t really seem like people got it,” said Keys about his team’s 1-0 lead at intermission. “We knew what we had to do, we just didn’t do it the first half. We knew we needed to play the ball to our teammates feet–don’t play through balls because obviously with the turf and the wet ground it was going to go all the way through.
“The second half we played to people’s feet and it worked out for us.”
Keys scored twice within five minutes in the second half, starting with an unassisted goal at 51 minutes. The tallies put an end to any suspense for the Rockets (19-5-3).
Rochester was as dominant on defense. It set an all-class record by not allowing a shot on or off goal. The Rockets tied the mark for corner kicks in a game with 16.
Teutopolis (16-9-2) made its first quarterfinal appearance. The Wooden Shoes hope the trip will begin the foundation for a successful soccer future.
“A lot of people didn’t expect us to make it here, but we showed them we have what it takes,” senior forward Bryce Weber said. “To be in the Elite Eight out of the entire Class A isn’t bad.”
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