By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher Ocean City’s Kristi Rohrer had to grow up quickly during her junior year of high school. That’s when dad Kirk and mom Antoinette informed her that Antoinette had been diagnosed with breast cancer. It was a difficult time for the three-sport Red Raiders standout, but Rohrer said her parents told her she was not permitted to use her mother’s illness as an excuse to lose her focus, either on the field or in the classroom. Rohrer didn’t, and put together quite a memorable high school athletic career as a member of the soccer, indoor track and lacrosse teams. She helped lead the soccer team to a 15-3-2 record that included an unbeaten mark in the Cape-Atlantic League American Conference (10-0-2) as well as a 2-0 win over Seneca in the opening round of the South Jersey Group 3 state playoffs. “My junior year was really rough when that happened, but I learned to stay positive and stay strong, and everything turned out fine in the end. I really grew up and matured, and realized that everything will be OK if you stay positive and stay strong,” Rohrer said of dealing with the news of her mother’s cancer diagnosis. “I definitely realized how important things are. My mom said she wanted me to excel in school and sports and that I couldn’t not focus on that because of her. So I tried my best in sports because that’s what she wanted.” 
Kristi Rohrer had a memorable senior season for the Ocean City girls lacrosse team, notching her 100th career goal and also leading the Red Raiders to a school-record 18 wins. (Glory Days Magazine photos/Dave O’Sullivan) Rohrer’s best was impressive, and on the lacrosse field is where she really shined. During her senior season she netted her 100th career goal and helped lead the Red Raiders to school records for consecutive wins (13) and wins in a season (18). Ocean City finished 18-4, nearly won the CAL title before falling by two goals to Middle Township, and earned a berth in the state playoffs. “It was a lot of fun. It was a really hard loss against Middle because we were tied at one point, but they beat us by two goals. That was really hard because we really wanted that CAL title, but other than that we had a great season,” Rohrer said. “I feel like with getting my 100th goal in lacrosse and getting first team all-CAL, and getting player of the week, stuff like that, I think that I left my mark.” 
Rohrer also helped the Ocean City girls soccer team to 15 wins and a berth in the state playoffs last fall. For her career, Rohrer finished with 101 goals and 89 assists. Her assist total was good for second all-time in school history, and her 50 assists as a senior landed her in the top 20 in the state. She also finished this past season as a first-team all-CAL selection and played in the North/South All-Star Game. “With soccer, my junior and senior year we were back-to-back CAL champs. We had a great team and I loved every single one of the girls,” Rohrer said. “With lacrosse, we really progressed from last year. We worked well as a team and broke a lot of records, such as 13 victories in a row and with the most victories with 18. Our goalie (Mo Twiggs) got over 500 saves and I got my 100th goal of the season, which was pretty cool.” Rohrer said she is ready to move on to the next level, where she plans to play lacrosse at Widener University in Chester, Pa. Still, leaving Ocean City High School behind won’t be easy, she said. “It’s very bittersweet. I’m ready to move on, but I’m also going to miss playing high school sports a lot. I’m going to miss soccer because I won’t continue to play that in college. I grew up playing it my whole life. I’m going to miss the friendships I made, the teams I was on. It’s definitely bittersweet. I’m going to miss a lot, but I’m also excited for what is to come,” Rohrer said. “I think I will look back and remember how memorable my senior year was. I’ll always remember the friendships and the great teams we had. I couldn’t be happier with the experience in both soccer and lacrosse, it was awesome.” So, did mom Antoinette cry during Kristi’s recent graduation? “I don’t think she did,” Rohrer said. “She doesn’t cry in front of me. My aunt told me that she cried over the phone when I went to college orientation. For both my parents, it feels good to make them proud. It’s a really good feeling, I always want to make them proud.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]
Kristi Rohrer’s ability to stay focused made her one of Ocean City’s top athletes
