By Rick Cassano for the Hamilton JournalNews

HAMILTON — Sammi Burton launched the ball into the goal, then disappeared.

That’s how Badin High’s victory drought against Girls Greater Cincinnati League rival Kettering Alter ended Thursday, with Burton being mobbed by her teammates on a cold evening at the Hamilton Soccer Stadium.

“The ball was loose, I decided to take a shot, and then I was on the bottom of the dog pile,” Burton said. “Scoring that goal was the biggest weight off my shoulders. It was finally over.”

The junior’s goal with 5:08 remaining in the second overtime period gave the Rams a 2-1 triumph and a Division II district girls soccer championship, sending the state’s top-ranked squad to the regional with a full head of steam.

Tori Mathews also scored off a Kristina Anderson assist for Badin, which improved to 14-3-2 and will face Madeira in the regional semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Hopewell Soccer Stadium.

“This was a big, big game,” said Ram coach Keith Harring, whose squad was knocked out of the tournament by Alter in a shootout last season. “It’s really exciting for the players and the school. The kids wanted to play Alter. They were hustling like crazy to win this game.”

Harring has been Badin’s head coach for four years, and his team had managed an 0-4-1 record against the Knights prior to Thursday’s emotional win.

Alter blanked the Rams 1-0 earlier this season, but the visitors seemed to run out of gas in the extra stanza and finished 11-9.

“We play Badin all the time in the league, and every time it’s like tonight,” Knight coach Jason Balogh said. “They just did a little extra in the second overtime period to put themselves in position to win the game. That girl did a tremendous job on that goal.

“We started nine sophomores and two juniors, so for the majority of these girls, this was their first time in this situation,” he added. “It’s a tough loss, but they left everything on the field. That’s all I can ask for.”

Jenny Rosen collected 10 saves in goal for Badin, while Alter’s Becca Ison stopped 17 shots in a battle of standout goalies.

The Rams scored first against Ison when Mathews headed in a ball from Anderson with 11:37 left in the opening half. But the Knights knotted the score with just 37 seconds remaining in the half when a Badin foul led to a direct-kick goal by Carly Mygrants.

“I got my fingertip on it,” Rosen said. “I was so mad. I almost had it.”

Harring wasn’t thrilled with the call that set Mygrants up just outside the box.

“I still don’t know what the call was,” Harring said. “Somebody said it might have been called a dangerous play. I don’t know if it was or not.”

It was 1-1 at halftime, and with the Rams controlling most of the first half, that was very good news for Alter.

“That goal was a big boost,” Balogh said. “It gave us a little shot of confidence and a little more energy.”

Indeed, the Knights played with more authority in the second half and in the first 15-minute OT period. But Badin took off at the start of the second overtime stanza and had several excellent scoring opportunities before Burton’s tally, a medium-range shot in front of the goal.

“This team has been together for a long time,” Harring said. “It’s neat as a coach to just step back and see the kids do what they need to do. When you watch these girls, you see a team that’s united.

“We have so much depth, and every kid contributes,” he continued. “We’re like a tree. All the roots and branches are part of the tree, just like every kid is a part of this team.”

Balogh said he hopes the Rams go on to win the state title.

“You have to be a league fan,” Balogh said. “I don’t know if there’s anybody out there that can beat them. It’s going to take an extraordinary effort to do it. This might have been the state championship game.”

Harring appreciates the sentiment, but he knows there’s plenty of work left to do.

“Our kids always say it’s one game at a time,” Harring said. “But the kids feel better getting rid of that Alter hex. We’ve had kind of a mental block against Alter.”

Badin played a good portion of the regular season at less than full strength because of injuries, but everybody’s back for the most important part of the campaign.

“I thought we dominated the game,” said Rosen, a junior. “The confidence from this game could get us through the rest of the tournament.”

"There’s some real emotion on this team,” Burton said. “We have so much desire and want to go a lot farther. It’s just amazing.”

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