Despite blistery conditions – it was snowing at kickoff – the boys soccer team won its final match of the season in a contest for the third place against Rockhurst, 2-0, behind two goals from forward Kyle Setchfield, the team’s leading scorer.

Having never played Rockhurst, the team did not know what to expect, according to senior goalkeeper Chase Webert. In fact, Webert did not have expectations for this particular game.

“We were expecting to be in the final, but we didn’t show up last night to play, so we’ll take third,” Webert said.

Although the team was not playing in the state championships, the team was not going to let its last game be a wash. Senior midfielder Logan Schmidt kept his focus because he wanted to make the most of his last game.

“We kept our cool and played our hearts off for our last game,” Schmidt said.

The two teams went scoreless throughout the first half, and it was not until there was only 18:18 left in the second half did a ball cross a goal line. Setchfield was able to put the Spartans on the scoreboard, which caused a change of pace in the game.

“The first goal really slowed the other team down and brought us up,” Webert said.

With even more enthusiasm, the team picked up and started to play to win. Senior midfielder Justin Stinson assisted the second goal when he took the corner kick the was placed to where Setchfield scored again with about 4:50 left in the half, tallying his 16th goal of the season. Schmidt believed the Spartans had completely outplayed the Hawklets.

“We possessed better than them, had better shape, and we tiki-taka’d,” Schmidt said.

Not only was this year’s soccer team the first soccer team to make it to the final four in school history, but it was also the first team to bring home a third place trophy. Being titled as one of the best high school soccer teams in Missouri was something to be proud of, according to Schmidt.

“I feel speechless, it’s a great memory and a good feeling,” Schmidt said.

For senior captain Ryan Hutson, the game was not simply a matter of win or loss. It was the last game of his, along with the other seniors, career, so the game was a matter of ending on a good note.

“It was my last game I’ll ever play and I didn’t want to end on a loss,” Hutson said.

The Spartans ended their season with a record of 23-5-1, the best record in school history.