Forrest, coming off a disappointing 5-0 shutout loss to Community last week, came out on Tuesday with fire in their eyes versus first place White House-Heritage (WHH), but a late fluke goal spoiled the fun for the Lady Rockets in a 3-2 loss in Chapel Hill.

"I could not have been more proud of my girls' performance," said Forrest head coach Natalie Dennis. "They showed up to play and they played hard all the way to the end."

Sudden change

The District 9-A/AA South Division leading Lady Patriots (11-2-1, 4-0) put some pressure on the Lady Rockets early in the contest, but could not convert and the game remained scoreless until a handball penalty on WHH changed the momentum.

Brynn Colvin took the free kick for Forrest and sent it long over the top where Sarah Blasingim beat two Lady Pats' defenders to the ball and sent a low glider past the goalie for a 1-0 FHS lead at the 32:20 mark of the first half.

The action was tight as both squads fought hard for control before the Lady Pats evened the score on a goal by Meagan Smith with just under 24 minutes to play in the first half.

Halftime tie

The Lady Rockets were undeterred as Cassie Septer and Blasingim came up with a pair of nice shots on goal, keeping the pressure on WHH, but the Lady Pats' keeper was up to the task, stopping both scoring attempts.

With 11 minutes to play in the half, Audra Roach stormed towards the Forrest net and got off a good shot, but Jasmine Runk was there for the save and the first half ended with the game still knotted at two.

"At halftime, I told them to keep up the good work and keep doing what they were doing," said Dennis.

In the second half, WHH started strong with three quick runs on the Forrest defensive end before their effort paid off when Smith scored her second goal of the night, making it 2-1.

Costly blow

The Lady Rockets were dealt another blow when Runk was hurt, trying to make a save with 25 minutes remaining in the contest.

Runk was carted off the field with an injured hip and her return is undetermined.

"Jasmine is out for the rest of this week for sure," said Dennis. "She is going to see an orthopedic doctor and we will know more about her injury after that."

Caitlin Yost took over in goal for Forrest. "Caitlyn stepped up as a goalie when Jasmine got hurt, while Aliyah Lloyd and Sierra Wagoner filled in Caitlyn's spot as stopper," said Dennis. "Everyone did what they needed to do to make it work."

New motivation

Forrest seemed extra motivated for their injured teammate and began to swarm the field with effort and hustle.

The extra juice paid off moments later when Rickee Gayle Carter knocked in a rebound, knotting game at 2-2 with just over 19 minutes to play in the contest

"Rickee Gayle played an awesome game, she never stopped hustling," said Dennis. "I had several girls that stepped up tonight. We played better as a team than we have in a couple of weeks."

Three minutes later, the Lady Pats put pressure on the Forrest defense and some really bad luck gave WHH a 3-2 lead.

The Lady Patriots scored on a rebound after an attempted clearing shot by the Lady Rockets sailed directly towards Yost in the net, who made a great save, but Hailey Boger was there for the easy tip-in on the rebound.

Final score

"The last goal by White House should not have happened, but I had girls out of their normal positions and it happened," said Dennis. "We adjusted and worked with what we had to finish out the game."

Forrest tried to come up with the equalizer, but it was not to be for the Lady Rockets in the one-goal margin of defeat.

"Again, I could not be more proud of my girls," said Dennis. "They never gave up and pushed hard until the end."

The Lady Rockets, who dropped to third place in district play, travel to Cornersville on Thursday in a non-league match-up.

"We are looking forward to going to Cornersville," said Dennis. "Playing county rivals is always fun."