Oct 25, 2012 3 min read

Name: Veronica Rothka School: Canon-McMillan Class: Senior Sport: Soccer Rothka’s week: Rothka scored seven goals during victories over Laurel Highlands, Belle Vernon and Hopewell, as Canon-McMillan closed the regular season with six wins and a tie in its last seven matches. She also scored two times to lead the 13th-seeded Big Macs (11-5-3) to a 3-1 win over No. 4 seed Penn-Trafford in the first round of the WPIAL Class AAA playoffs last Saturday. “I have a lot of girls who want to score, but they’re not driven like she is,” Big Macs coach Dave Derrico said. “That’s what she’s all about. She’s a natural goal-scorer.” Bouncing back: Rothka leads Canon-McMillan with 24 goals this season. An impressive total by itself, but don’t forget that she missed five games during the first half of the season with a concussion, which she suffered during the first few minutes of a 3-0 loss to North Allegheny Sept. 8. Rothka returned for a 13-0 win over Trinity on Sept. 26, and her presence has keyed Canon-McMillan’s second half surge that has negated a 2-4 start. “She hadn’t taken the leadership role before, but she found it this season,” Derrico said of Rothka, who also has eight assists. “It also was when she came back. She really has blossomed as a leader since then, and that drives the team, I think.” In good company: Derrico compared Rothka to Veronica Latsko from Peters Township, who’s arguably the best girls soccer player in the WPIAL. Both can create their own offense. Both are great on runs. And both are physical. “You have to have a credible offensive threat; you can play the greatest defense in the world, but a team’s going to break you down sooner or later if you don’t have a really aggressive attack,” Derrico said. “Veronica gives us that. When she gets the ball or one of the midfielders gets the ball and slots it through to her, that team is on its heels because she’s so effective.” Playing physical comes naturally to Rothka. To her, that’s how the game should be played. “That’s just soccer to me – being physical and not stopping until the end of the game,” Rothka said. “You have to be physical and active; you can’t just sit back and let someone push you off the ball. You have to push them off the ball. You have to be stronger than the other person you’re playing.” Time management: Besides playing soccer, Rothka is also a standout shortstop on the WPIAL champion Canon-McMillan softball team – she hit .329 and scored 17 runs – and works a part-time job at Bob Evans. Such a large number of responsibilities will be a definite benefit for college, Rothka said, no matter whether she chooses to play softball or soccer. “I know in college I’m going to have to have really good time management,” Rothka said. “I guess I’m learning now, so when I get to college it’s not going to be a huge shock.” – Compiled by Jason Mackey