ROGERS’ GOLDEN GOAL POWERS DRAGONS TO REGIONAL SEMIS

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Haley Rogers joined an exclusive Blue Dragon club on Sunday becoming only the second Hutchinson Community College women's soccer player in the 20-year history of the program to score an overtime goal in the postseason.

Rogers' Golden Goal came with 1 minute, 56 seconds into the second overtime as the No. 14-ranked and third-seeded Blue Dragons defeated sixth-seeded Dodge City 1-0 in the opening-round of the 2024 Region VI/Plains District Tournament at Don Michael Field.

The Blue Dragons (10-2-6) advance to the Region 6 Tournament semifinals for the for the 15th time in 20 seasons and will play at No. 2 seed Butler on Thursday at BG Products Veterans Memorial Stadium in El Dorado. The game time will be announced on Monday.

Locked in a scoreless struggle through 100 minutes, the Blue Dragon defense created the opportunity for Rogers' game winner.

Sophomore Lorena Gomes intercepted a Dodge City pass just inside the Conquistadors' offensive zone. Gomes immediately worked the ball forward to sophomore Kaitlyn Edwards, who then lobbed a pass intended for Rogers. That pass glanced off a defensive header attempt of a Dodge City player and fell right to the feet of a sprinting Rogers about 28 yards from the goal. Rogers drove in to about 10 yards, drew Dodge City goalkeeper Ana Ramirez-Cortes out and scored the game-winning goal with 8:04 left in the second overtime.

The Blue Dragons are 2-0 all-time in Region 6 Tournament overtime games. They are 2-2 in all postseason games in program history.

Rogers joins Blue Dragon Hall of Famer Alicia Robinson as the only players in Hutchinson women's soccer history to score a postseason Golden Goal. Robinson scored the game winner in overtime on a corner kick she bent into the goal in the 2010 Region 6 Tournament Championship game on October 31, 2010 in Topeka.

Credited with the game-winning assist, Edwards becomes the first Blue Dragon ever to have a postseason game-winning assist.

Other than the game winner, offensive opportunities were few for the Dragons.

Right before the end of the first half, Kira Artmann put Hutchinson's first shot on goal that was deflected by Ramirez-Cortez, but went out of bounds for a corner kick. With the final seconds ticking away, Rogers got the corner off, but Ramirez-Cortez snagged out of the air surrounded by Blue Dragons with 1 seconds left in a scoreless first half.

Dodge City out-shot the Blue Dragons 13-10 and the teams were tied in shots on goal with six each.

Blue Dragon sophomore goalkeeper Karsyn Slothower (5-2-5) had six saves in her fourth shutout and fifth victory of the season. She made two strong saves in the first 5:15 of the game. Her other four saves were routine saves.

Slothower's 11th career shutout tied Michelle McElroy (2008-09) and Jennifer Currie (2014-15) for the fourth-most career shutouts by a Blue Dragon keeper. Her 17th career victory ties Ashley Perez (2005-06) and Carly McArthur (2006-07) for fifth on the Hutchinson career list.

The Blue Dragons run their current unbeaten streak to nine games (6-0-3). This was Hutchinson's first overtime victory since September 28, 2022, a 2-1 win over Coffeyville. The Blue Dragons won their 30th-consecutive game against Dodge City and are 2-0 against the Conquistadors in the Region 6 Tournament.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons are now 10-6-12 all-time in overtime games, regular season or postseason, including 5-2 in double-overtime games. … The Dragons are now 23-16 all-time in the Region 6 Tournament, 15-5 in quarterfinal games. … The last double-overtime victory by the Blue Dragons was 4-3 over Northeastern Junior College on August 27, 2022 in Sterling, Colorado when Adrianna Delgado scored the game winner. … The Blue Dragons are 31-1 all-time with 22 shutouts against Dodge City. … Haley Rogers' fourth game-winning goal of the season tied six others for 12th place on the Blue Dragon single-season list. … Karsyn Slothower now has 166 career saves, second most in Blue Dragon history. … Slothower's 2,730 career minutes played are second-most in team history. … The Blue Dragons reach the 10-win plateau for the 18th time in 20 seasons.