By Ben Furnish

The Knights barely had a chance to catch their breath ahead of their championship bout with the Holy Trinity Hawks. The squad looked exhausted, limping onto the field for game time.  The Hawks had just wrapped up a thrilling upset, beating Villanova College in extra time. Holy Trinity was riding on a high, heading into the championship game, but, the Knights were both physically and mentally ready.

 Holy Trinity played with a physical approach, something the Knights were ready for, just exiting a brutal contest with SAC. The ref blew the whistle, RSGC kicked off the game, and just like that, all the season’s work depended on 90 minutes. 

The Knights were pressing early. In the 20th minute, the ball found Sam Andersen yet again. With his weak foot, Andersen demonstrated outstanding coordination, drilling the ball to the bottom left corner with a volley. The Knights were ecstatic. All they needed to do was hold serve, containing the Hawks with technical ball movement and stout defense. The rest of the first half was relatively non-eventful, and the Knights finished the first 45 minutes with a 1-0 lead. Coach Thornbury and Fleming had little to say at halftime. The squad had been in this situation before. 

As the second half began, the physicality and intensity ramped up. Holy Trinity began to press on the attack, doubling whoever had the ball in hopes of a turnover leading to a counter-attack. The second half was once again un-eventful, favoring the Knights. As the last ten minutes began, chaos ensued. The field felt as if it were titled downwards against the Knights, with the Hawks barreling down on them with force. Goaltender Connor White was a wall, saving shot after shot. In the 94th minute, the ball was amidst the chaos. It rolled to the Hawks’ right winger, who seemed to have all the time in the world, and he made no mistake with it. The ball was drilled into the back of the net, and just like that, it was 1-1. Extra time –  the last thing the Knights needed. 

The players limped off the field to the bench. Few words were spoken. All strategy was out the window. These next 20 minutes would come down to which team had more heart. The entire season was in jeopardy. As extra time progressed, both teams seemed to be attempting to simply survive, with little aggression or offensive potential. As the last five minutes of extra time trickled down, it seemed inevitable that the teams would go to a penalty shoot-out. 

On the Knights’ final drive downfield, the Hawks committed a foul. This looked to mean absolutely nothing, as the Knights were simply too far from the goal to have any sort of game-winning potential. Striker Marcus Ochrym lined up to take the free kick. He took two steps back and drilled the ball. The ball soared through the air as all players stood and watched it glide majestically. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion, as all eyes were on the black and white sphere soaring towards the goal. It seemed to hang in the air for an eternity. Realizing that the shot had potential, the Hawks goalkeeper made a desperate attempt to block the shot. It was no use. The ball wedged perfectly in the top left corner, and just like that, the Knights were champions. 

The squad was ecstatic, embracing each other and realizing that their goals had been accomplished. All of the early morning practices in the cold, the after-school runs around the track, and the countless moments of adversity faced were worth it. For the first time in over a decade, the Knights were champions. This historic undefeated season came to a storybook ending. The Knights did it. We were officially the last team standing.