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Sports

Top Scorer Hopes to Take Eagles to State

Junior Alexis Robbers has 18 goals, three assists on season.

ORCHARD FARM - So far the only person able to slow down Orchard Farm soccer standout Alexis Robbers is her own coach.     

And Brandon Cox is doing it for all the right reasons.     

Robbers, a junior scoring machine, is so talented that last season Cox had to initiate what has become known around Eagle Nation as the, "Three Goal Rule."     

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Once Robbers, or any other Orchard Farm player, scores a third goal in a game, that player must either leave the field for the day or move back and play defense. That way, the Eagles hold down the score against weaker opponents. Plus, it gives some of Cox' other players a chance to score.     

Yes, the 5-foot-7 inch Robbers is that good.     

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Robbers has scored 18 goals for Orchard Farm, which enters the Alton Marquette Tournament on Tuesday with a 9-1 record. She has three assists and has had a hand in 21 of her team's 39 goals this season.     

Robbers is the top scorer in the state among Class 1 performers. Thanks in part to her scoring prowess, Orchard Farm is ranked fourth in the latest state-wide poll and a solid choice to reach the state tournament.     

"If I let her, she could score 50 goals in a season," said Cox. "She's just naturally talented."     

Robbers, for one, loves the Three Goal Rule.     

"It's not about how many goals I can get or how many another player can get," she says. "It's about winning as a team. And so far we've been doing a lot of that."     

The Eagles are indeed off to a blistering start. They won their first nine matches and outscored their opponents 38-10 before dropping a 2-1 decision at Winfield on Thursday.    

Robbers is taking the area by storm with her uncanny finishing ability. She has scored goals from long range, close range, and everywhere in between. The strength of her game lies in her nose for the ball and ability to dominate play in the air. Three of her goals have come off head balls, a rarity in the girls' game.    

Despite her skills, Robbers remains committed to the team concept. She says her finest moment of the season is not one of her many multi-goal games. Instead, she listed setting up freshman Carley Swisher with a perfect pass for Swisher's first career goal in a 9-0 win over McCluer as her shinning moment.    

Robbers, already shifted to defense that day after three tallies, made sure her younger teammate got to share in the goal-scoring joy.    

"It was great, just to see her face and see how happy she was," Robbers said.     Explained Cox, "That tells you all you need to know about Alexis right there. She's a perfect teammate. Not only does she make all those around her better, but she enjoys doing it."    

Robbers grew up in Largo, FL and moved to the St. Charles area prior to her sophomore season. She made an immediate impact scoring 27 goals with nine assists last spring in leading Orchard Farm to a 14-10-1 record. In doing so, she set a school record for most goals and points in a season, a pair of marks she is likely to pass again.    

As the new girl on the team, Robbers easily fit in with her teammates, who had heard rumors about a new Florida hot shot moving into the area.    

"The first game, I think they were kind of wondering about me and I was wondering about them," said Robbers. "Then after that, we all kind of got together, and we've all been friends since. That's the best part about this team. Everyone likes everyone else. That's why we work so well together."    

Orchard Farm junior Brooke Burckhardt, who is having a breakout season of her own with 13 goals, says Robbers had very little trouble becoming one of the girls.     "She's just a joy to play with," Burckhardt said. "It's fun to watch her. She can do a little bit of everything."    

Robbers and Burckhardt are two of the Eagles' team captains. They live right next to one another in New Town and have become best of friends.    

"We're like sisters," Burckhardt said.    

Robbers and Burckhardt, with a combined 31 goals, form one of the toughest one-two punches in the area. When opponents key on Robbers, Burckhardt has been there to pick up the slack. And visa versa.    

"They know each other moves, what each other is going to do," said Cox. "It's tough to stop both of them."     

It is also tough silence the pair, especially the outgoing Robbers, who is known to strike up a conversation with on-field opponents during a lull in play.    

"I'm sure coach thinks we both talk too much," said Robbers. "But we've always got something to say."    

The 17-year-old Robbers, who plays select soccer year-round for the Lou Fusz Club, also plays volleyball at Orchard Farm. But her future lies on the pitch. She has already made a verbal commitment to attend Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg.    

"Her upside is unlimited," said Cox. "She's improved so much from last year there is really no telling how good she can become."    

But for now, Robbers wants to take the Eagles to the state tournament. "That would be like a dream," she says. A dream that may soon become reality. 

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