Rinehart nets another hat trick as Cathedral boys kick away Natchez
Published 12:00 am Wednesday, January 15, 2003
NATCHEZ &045; Dennis Hogue had a goal in mind when he told Rocky Kettering that Tuesday night’s boys soccer game was for the memory of Bennett Jeansonne.
Other teams this season will unquestionably show their sympathy for the Green Wave’s loss of Jeansonne late last year, but possibly none will dedicate the game for the purpose Hogue chose.
&uot;I wanted the kids from my team and Rocky’s to play tonight’s game at their top athletic ability and play with extreme sportsmanship because that’s the way Bennett would’ve played,&uot; said Hogue, who coached Jeansonne in recreation leagues.
&uot;We miss him. He wasn’t our teammate, but we all hung out with him.&uot;
After warmups and before kickoff, both teams gathered at midfield at the No. 2, which was Jeansonne’s jersey number, to pray with one another.
The 6-1 Cathedral victory did not reflect the way the game was played, as each club filled Hogue’s wishes for a full 80 minutes of clean, all-out soccer.
Palmer Rinehart registered another hat trick, scoring four goals in the win, highlighted by a spectacular curving line drive that found the back of the net with nine minutes left before halftime.
Rinehart took a pass from Patrick Biglane, weaved around two defenders and blasted a low shot by Bulldog keeper Aaron Ratliff.
&uot;We started off playing real well,&uot; Rinehart said. &uot;I had a few breakaways and put some in the back of the net.&uot;
Everybody played for the Green Wave, with backup Will Carter scoring the other two Cathedral goals.
&uot;With district games coming up this weekend, it’s good for our starters to see our bench can pick up the slack when they’re not in the game,&uot; Kettering said. &uot;They participate in all of practice, but it’s important to get them in the game situations.&uot;
Natchez had the 9-1 Green Wave on their heels early on when
Matthew Henderson’s stubbornness netted his Bulldogs a score and cut the deficit to one, 2-1, with 19 minutes to play in the first half.
On the throw-in Henderson popped the ball over Cathedral goalkeeper Brent Tosspon’s head where Tosspon nonchalantly ran the ball down feet from the goal.
Tosspon bobbled the ball and Henderson was there to head it in for the goal.
Within the next 10 minutes the Green Wave scored two goals, to push ahead 4-1 before the opening half’s horn sounded.
&uot;It was a good workout for my defense,&uot; Kettering said. &uot;We’ve been trying different personnel since Bennett’s death and haven’t found the chemistry. They’re starting to work it out.&uot;
Rinehart said just because Tuesday was a non-district game didn’t mean that he or his teammates treated it any different.
With back-to-back district games beginning Friday with Franklin County, Rinehart said he didn’t want any laziness to carry over to the
next game.
Natchez girls 1, Cathedral 0
Make it two-for-two.
The Lady Bulldogs, who got their only other win of the season against Cathedral two months ago, made it a clean sweep of the Lady Green Wave on Monday night.
Natchez got a goal from Stacy Weaver in the first half and clung to that lead with stellar play in the goal from keeper Amber Smoot.
&uot;Most of their shots came at me pretty hard, but I didn’t have any choice but to stop them,&uot; Smoot said. &uot;They work hard and we do too. The best team may not have won tonight, but we’ll take it.&uot;
As in the boys’ game, Kettering was pleased with how his bench performed.
Cathedral started the game with two starters out and ended it with another two leaving with bruises.
&uot;Even though it was a loss, we learned to trust each other tonight,&uot; Kettering said. &uot;The girls who didn’t start earned a lot of respect tonight.&uot;