Category: Girls Soccer

All-state girls soccer teams for the 2019 season

The 2019 all-state girls soccer teams honor the best players in the sport as judged by the leagues and coaches. They are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.

These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues, and then a vote of head coaches.

Player and coach of the year was also selected by a vote of the coaches.

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Class 5A

Grandview’s Kacy Johnston. (Derek Regensburger/MaxPreps)

Player of the year: Kacy Johnston, Grandview

Coach of the year: Tari Wood, Grandview

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Tessa Barton	Columbine	FORW	Senior
Brooke Berdan	Fairview	MF	Senior
Lauren Holleran	Grandview	D/MF	Senior
Kacy Johnston	Grandview	MF	Senior
Madison Livingston	Grandview	GK	Senior
Grayson Lynch	Rock Canyon	FORW	Senior
Caylin Lyubenko	Grandview	MF	Junior
Mallory Mooney	Broomfield	FORW	Junior
Sarah Piper	Ralston valley	MF/FORW	Senior
Lauren Walter	Arapahoe	FORW	Junior
Audrey Weiss	Arapahoe	FORW	Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Lauren Durbin	Rock Canyon	MF	Senior
Cori Dyke	Valor Christian	MF/FORW	Senior
Shaylee Gailus	Broomfield	FORW	Senior
Abby Gearhart	Windsor	MF/FORW/STRK	Senior
Maddie Hahn	Arapahoe	D	Senior
Madi Hand	Rocky Mountain	MF	Senior
Ava Laden	Regis Jesuit	FORW	Junior
Reilly Madden	Boulder	D	Senior
Grace McReynolds	Rampart		Junior
Izzy Munsell	Broomfield	D	Senior
Shalom Prince	Grandview	FORW/MF	Senior

Honorable mention:

Aaliyah Acevedo, Cherokee Trail, Junior
Shayla Addington, Chaparral, D, Freshman
Brynn Boeyink, Mountain Vista, D, Junior
Mackenzie Bryant, Cherry Creek, GK, Senior
Brae Cole, Monarch, Sophomore
Emily Cottrell, Rock Canyon, D, Senior
Madison DeHerrera, Ralston Valley, MF/FORW, Senior
Lila Dere, Fruita Monument, FORW, Junior
Mikayla Eccher, Rocky Mountain, MF, Senior
Makenna Fowler, Arvada West, MF/FORW, Senior
Jariya Freeling, Denver East, D, Senior
Jordan Garrett, Rampart, Junior
Kaitlin Glover, Cherry Creek, MF, Senior
Anna Hart, ThunderRidge, STRK, Senior
Lucy Hart, Pine Creek, Sophomore
Tara Hoffman, Heritage, GK, Senior
Riley Kaali-Nagy, Columbine, FORW, Freshman
Carty Kingsbury, Windsor, MF/FORW, Freshman
Sophia Leone, Fossil Ridge, Junior
Daisy Light, Monarch, Senior
Marisa Lucero, Doherty, STRK/MF, Junior
Kailey Maness, Legacy, Senior
Maria Martinez, Liberty, GK, Sophomore
Makayla Merlo, Legacy, MF, Junior
Sophie Moran, Ralston Valley, D, Senior
Rylee Mullen, Chatfield, MF, Senior
Nariana Nealy, Northglenn, FORW/GK, Senior
Molly Reich, Regis Jesuit, D, Senior
Lucy Roberts, Legend, Junior
Kaitlyn Rogers, Fossil Ridge, Sophomore
Sarina Russ, Fairview, MF, Senior
Dekota Schubert, Douglas County, Junior
Hanna Sexton, Highlands Ranch, MF, Senior
Kailey Seymour, Castle View, D/MF, Junior
Laurel Storheim, Fruita Monument, MF, Senior
Kali Villalobos, Brighton, Junior
Savannah Watts, Prairie View, GK, Senior
Kylie Wells, Chatfield, STRK, Junior

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Class 4A

Cheyenne Mountain’s Lisa Long. (Derek Regensburger/MaxPreps)

Player of the year: Lisa Long, Cheyenne Mountain

Coach of the year: Nikki Athey, Cheyenne Mountain

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Abby Barhydt	Palmer Ridge		Junior
Marissa Dowlin	Cheyenne Mountain	FORW	Senior
Laryssa Hamblen	D’Evelyn		Senior
Molly Kratzer	Wheat Ridge	MF	Senior
Jadyn Ledoux	Sand Creek	FORW	Sophomore
Lisa Long	Cheyenne Mountain	FORW	Senior
Liza Louthan	Air Academy	D	Senior
Bella Scaturro	D’Evelyn		Senior
Zoe Sims	Air Academy	MF	Senior
Colleen Tyrrell	Silver Creek	D	Senior
Luisa Weiner	Evergreen		Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Baylee Barnes	Air Academy	FORW	Senior
Kinley Carter	Pueblo Centennial	FORW	Senior
Macy Clem	Mullen	MF	Senior
Trinity Harvey	The Classical Academy	FORW	Junior
Kaitlin Hinkle	Pueblo County		Senior
Sharon Mayes	Discovery Canyon	FORW	Junior
Sophia McConnell	Cheyenne Mountain	MF	Sophomore
Olivia Pietro	Green Mountain		Senior
Catherine Rapp	Evergreen		Freshman
Elizabeth Rapp	Evergreen		Freshman
Madeline Schuemann	Sand Creek	D	Sophomore

Honorable mention:

Cailynn Andreis, Canon City, D, Sophomore
Catherine Bakken, George Washington, MF/FORW, Senior
Carlene Beaton, Denver North, D/GK, Senior
Morgan Berry, Woodland Park, MF, Freshman
Faith Brendefur, Centaurus, Senior
Allison Canada, Mesa Ridge, D, Senior
Hannah Coster, Durango, MF, Junior
Logan DuFord, Wheat Ridge, GK, Senior
Kate Eggen, Silver Creek, MF, Senior
Jackie Escalera, Fort Morgan, FORW, Sophomore
Melina Faris, Pueblo County, FORW/MF, Junior
Kiera Flanagan, Niwot, FORW, Sophomore
Jersey Garoutte, Pueblo West, FORW/MF/D, Junior
Drew Girling, Sierra, GK, Junior
Stephanie Gwilliam, Thompson Valley, Sophomore
McKenna Harrington, Erie, FORW, Senior
Molly Hennessy, Skyline, FORW/MF/D, Junior
Mikayla Henson, Pueblo Centennial, D, Sophomore
Kiera Hess, D’Evelyn, GK, Senior
Jaelyn Jackson, Thomas Jefferson, D/FORW, Senior
Allie Jones, Pueblo Centennial, MF, Sophomore
Riley Jones, Palmer Ridge, Sophomore
Alexa Karsel, Silver Creek, STRK, Junior
Haley Klasner, Standley Lake, MF, Senior
Claire Krueger, Battle Mountain, D, Senior
Lily Maus, Evergreen, Sophomore
Rachel Melchior, Elizabeth, FORW, Junior
Delaney Moon, Steamboat Springs, STRK, Senior
Shelby Olson, Mountain View, MF/GK, Junior
Kiley O’Rourke, Canon City, Senior
Lauren Prescott, Conifer, MF, Senior
Abby Raio, Pueblo South, MF, Junior
Yadira Ramos Gurrola, Skyview, HB/STRK, Senior
Addie Randel, Northridge, FORW/MF, Junior
Shelby Ransom, Green Mountain, Senior
Talia Schmidt, The Classical Academy, Sophomore
Abby Scruton, Glenwood Springs, Sophomore
Emma Seufer, Ponderosa, D, Junior
Shelby Smotzer, Frederick, Senior
Emily Stec, Golden, FORW, Junior
Lauren Strizich, Coronado, MF, Junior
Audrey Teague, Battle Mountain, D, Senior
Hailey Ter Meer, Greeley Central, GK/FORW, Sophomore
Isabelle Thibault, Falcon, D/MF, Senior
Lesley Vasquez, Northfield, MF/STRK, Freshman
Kaylah Wanna, Mullen, FORW/MF, Senior
Haley Williams, Mead, Freshman

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Class 3A

Colorado Academy’s Catie Groves. (Paul DiSalvo/MaxPreps)

Player of the year: Catie Groves, Colorado Academy

Coach of the year: Sean Stedeford, Colorado Academy

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Bridget Lynch	Jefferson Academy	D/MF	Senior
Catie Groves	Colorado Academy		Senior
Iris Zhang	Peak to Peak	FORW/MF	Junior
Kelley Francis	Aspen	FORW	Sophomore
Kendall Beall	Colorado Academy		Junior
Kristen Capan	Jefferson Academy	FORW/MF	Senior
Lily Thimsen	Jefferson Academy	D/MF	Junior
Mari Annest	Colorado Academy		Senior
Maya Pellegrini	Colorado Academy		Sophomore
Mika Fisher	Kent Denver	GK	Junior
Sidney Chong	Kent Denver		Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Taylor Ehlert	Middle Park	MF	Senior
Megan Elmer	Kent Denver		Senior
Lily Fletcher	Prospect Ridge Academy	MF	Junior
Katie Fowler	St. Mary’s	D	Senior
Kayla Futakami	Stargate School	FORW	Sophomore
Sammy Gish	Vail Mountain	MF	Senior
Annabelle Johnson	Kent Denver		Junior
Lisa McClain	Middle Park	FORW	Senior
Laura Pelino	Salida		Senior
Natalie Smink	DSST: Stapleton	MF/FORW	Junior
McKenzie Stricker	The Academy	MF	Sophomore

Honorable mention:

Destany Araiza, Atlas Preparatory School, Junior
Nevaeh Archuleta, Sterling, FORW/STRK, Senior
Victoria Arzalo, KIPP Denver Collegiate, Senior
Hannah Baylor, The Vanguard School, GK/FORW, Sophomore
Addison Bright, Salida, GK, Senior
Emily Broadhurst, Roaring Fork, Junior
Mary Brummel, St. Mary’s, FORW, Senior
Lesli Bueso, Aurora West College Prep Academy, GK/D, Sophomore
Ava Candelaria, DSST: Byers, MF, Sophomore
Shaya Chenoweth, Grand Valley, MF/FORW, Senior
Sheridan Choat, Lamar, Senior
Julia Creech, St. Mary’s, MF, Sophomore
Emma Day, Basalt, MF/FORW, Junior
Lorelai Flores, Eagle Ridge Academy, MF/STRK, Freshman
Kaylie Gabel, The Academy, FORW/MF, Senior
Lauren Gamlin, Liberty Common, MF, Junior
Reygan Garcia, Fort Lupton, MF/FORW/STRK, Freshman
Brianna Gelok, Eagle Ridge Academy, MF/FORW, Freshman
Kait Halverson, Colorado Springs Christian, FORW, Senior
Emily Hughes, Eagle Ridge Academy, FORW, Junior
Jamison Litvay, Buena Vista, STRK, Freshman
Ainsley MacDonald, Prospect Ridge Academy, FORW, Freshman
Ellie MacKendrick, Middle Park, MF, Senior
Margo McHugh, Aspen, D, Senior
Kelsey Mundy, Florence, MF/FORW, Senior
Audrey Pulliam, Bennett, Junior
Nallely Robles, DSST: Green Valley Ranch, Senior
Caileen Sienchnect, Manitou Springs, MF, Senior
Morgan Thompson, Pagosa Springs, MF, Senior
Ashlee Trujillo, Riverdale Ridge, Freshman
Missa Webb, Delta, FORW, Senior
Alyssa Wenzel, Coal Ridge, Senior
Morgan White, Frontier Academy, Junior
MyAnna Winters, James Irwin, FORW/HB, Sophomore

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Class 2A

Dawson School’s Degen Miller. (Paul DiSalvo/MaxPreps)

Player of the year: Degen Miller, Dawson School

Coach of the year: Brad Homan, Denver Christian

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Kara Amidon	Denver Christian	MF/FORW	Junior
Karina Davalos	Crested Butte		Senior
Alex Dunbar	Dawson School		Junior
Cameron Epstein	Dawson School		Senior
Tess Fenerty	Crested Butte		Senior
Olivia Hansen	Cornerstone Christian Academy		Freshman
Degen Miller	Dawson School		Sophomore
Molly Miller	Loveland Classical		Senior
Samantha Morrell	Telluride		Junior
Eden Reece	Denver Christian	GK	Junior
Kaya Schaap	Denver Christian	MF	Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Sydney Adamson	Rye		Freshman
Makayla Dannelly	Cornerstone Christian Academy		Sophomore
Sydney Hansen	Cornerstone Christian Academy		Junior
Katherine Hatch	Colorado Springs School		Senior
Sofia Mier	Fountain Valley	MF	Sophomore
Holland Reece	Denver Christian	FB	Junior
Claire Shaver	Telluride	GK	Junior
Leah Shorey	Thomas MacLaren School	STRK/MF	Sophomore
Meghan Sloan	Front Range Christian		Senior
Siena Truex	Crested Butte		Senior
Grace Whitehorn	Del Norte	D	Junior

Honorable mention:

Sophie Adamson, Rye, Freshman
Amy Antes, Evangelical Christian, Junior
Alessa Baker, Rye, Sophomore
Ella Beck, Colorado Rocky Mountain, Senior
Mia Gardner, Thomas MacLaren School, GK, Junior
Justice Gearhard, Cornerstone Christian Academy, Senior
Juliet Hall, Thomas MacLaren School, MF, Junior
Jamie Johnson, Fountain Valley, FORW, Senior
Cameron McClelland, Loveland Classical, Sophomore
Elaizha Nelson, Belleview Christian, Freshman
Kendra Parra, Del Norte, FORW, Junior
Tilly Rahm, Fountain Valley, GK, Junior
Sidney Singh, Front Range Christian, Sophomore

June 5, 2019

Video: June’s Jeffco Preps With Pleuss

A roundup of Jeffco prep highlights from May with Dennis Pleuss, Jeffco Public Schools’ Communication Specialist. This month’s edition features Golden’s boys lacrosse team pulling out a thrilling overtime victory in the Class 4A state championship game. Evergreen girls soccer battling it out in the 4A state title game for the second time in three years and Jefferson Academy trying to repeat at 3A girls soccer state champs. Wheat Ridge and Golden baseball teams headed to Colorado Springs for the 4A state tournament. We take a look back at the track and field state three-day state meet at Jeffco Stadium.

May 31, 2019
Long scores twice as Cheyenne Mountain claims first 4A girls soccer title since 2015

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

COMMERCE CITY — A little more than five minutes away from its first state championship in four years, Cheyenne Mountain’s girls soccer team first had to weather the most intense few seconds of its season.

With the Indians leading 2-1 in the Class 4A state championship game Wednesday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Evergreen sent a corner kick into play that glanced off the post. The ball then disappeared in a scrum of players from both sides for several seconds.

Indians goalkeeper Ashley Bertsch frantically tried to locate the ball, which finally squirted through. Bertsch fell on it, and Cheyenne Mountain was able to ride it out and secure the victory for its first 4A state title since winning three in a row from 2013-15.

“That was the longest few seconds of my life,” Indians coach Nikki Athey said. “Ashley was amazing – so good.”

Cheyenne Mountain (11-8) started the 2019 season with losses in five of its first six games. The Indians finished fifth in the Pikes Peak Athletic Conference and entered the postseason as the No. 21 seed.

On its path to state glory, Cheyenne Mountain upset four of the top eight seeds, including No. 3 Evergreen.

“It’s been crazy, the whole thing,” said Indians senior Lisa Long, who scored both of the team’s goals. “None of us thought we were going to be here; honestly, just to make it was insane. Now that we won, it’s even crazier.

“Crazy is the only word I can use to describe it!”

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

With the score tied at 1-1 in the second half, Long found a seam to knock the game-winner into the back of the net with just less than 13 minutes remaining. Long slipped past a pair of defenders and drew Cougars keeper Sarah Straut out of the net, ripping a ball past her into the left corner.

“Everyone was pushing so hard. I knew that I had to do it for my team,” Long said. “Every single girl on this worked so hard, especially for our center-back (Katy Darr) who got hurt – we were all playing for her.”

It was reminiscent of Long’s first goal, which came just more than 10 minutes into the first half, shortly after Evergreen’s Elizabeth Rapp took a cross and fired a shot that went directly to Bertsch. On the ensuing possession, Long broke past the defense and beat Straut to put Cheyenne Mountain on top.

Long, who led the team with 18 goals this season, had seven goals in the playoffs alone.

“Lisa is a persistent, tenacious young lady with a ton of speed,” Athey said. “She’s so hard to mark. She’ll hang out, hang out, and then she’s gone. She comes out of nowhere sometimes.”

Evergreen (14-4-2) wasn’t without its chances, but for the most part couldn’t get things to fall into place.

The Cougars got on the board in the 39th minute to knot the game up at 1-1. Myla Stewart sent a long free kick from the right sideline and just tucked it under the crossbar for the score.

(Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

But a number of other opportunities couldn’t find a home, including two shots that went just over the crossbar late in the first half.

Bertsch finished with eight saves, six of which came in the second half.

“All the credit to Ashley,” Long said. “She had never been a keeper before this season. We didn’t have one, and she stepped up and took the role.”

Evergreen was making its second appearance in the 4A title game in three years.

As her players streamed up into the stands to celebrate with family and friends, Athey said it was incredible what the players were able to accomplish, noting that the squad found its team unity and kept pushing forward.

After missing out on two years, the Indians also put the PPAC back on top in 4A.

“We never lost hope. We were just going from game to game. We weren’t looking too far ahead,” Long said. “We just knew that if we turned our season around and pushed for something in the future, things would get better. Here we are!”

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

May 23, 2019
Grandview tops Arapahoe for fourth 5A girls soccer title in five years

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

COMMERCE CITY — Caylin Lyubenko just has that championship touch.

For the second year in a row, the Grandview standout came through for her team at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. The Wolves junior scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner late in the first half, sending Grandview to a 2-1 victory over Arapahoe in the Class 5A state championship game Wednesday night.

Grandview (17-2-1) defended its 2018 title – a game in which Lyubenko scored the game-winner in overtime – and claimed its fourth 5A trophy in five years.

“This team has always been good. This program has always been good,” Lyubenko said. “It started five years ago – we had one season off, but we’re back again. We’re back-to-back.”

Holding the championship aloft was made all that much sweeter by defeating Centennial League rival Arapahoe, which played the Wolves to a 2-2 tie back in early April.

It also helped ease the sting of the 5A boys title game in the fall, where Arapahoe defeated Grandview on the same field.

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

“The rivalry between Arapahoe and Grandview is pretty big,” Lyubenko said. “Obviously our boys lost in the fall, and we wanted redemption.”

Lyubenko had the only goal of the 2018 contest against Broomfield, sending her team to the title as a sophomore. Wednesday night she didn’t wait quite so long, finding the back of the net twice in the first half.

The first goal came in the 25th minute of play. A deep throw-in from Kayleigh Jones was sent over to Lyubenko, who sent a high ball past Arapahoe goalkeeper Grace Cadorette.

The Warriors (15-4-1) tied it up a little more than a minute later. Audrey Weiss sprinted through the Wolves defense and sent the ball past Maddie Livingston to make it a 1-1 game.

Lyubenko capped the scoring in the closing minutes of the first half, sending a long liner that eluded Cadorette.

“She hasn’t scored like that all season,” Grandview coach Tari Wood said. “She gets special ones when we need them. Who would have said one last year, and two this year?”

Arapahoe put the pressure on the Wolves defense in the second half. The Warriors sent six shots on goal, but Livingston was able to turn them all away.

In the final 10 minutes, Summer Mock sent a cross to Elsa Edmonds, whose shot was denied by the Wolves keeper. In the 77th minute, Livingston stopped another ball from Weiss.

“I thought we played a little bit too much long ball, which is Arapahoe’s game more than us,” said Wood, who added that Livingston rose to the occasion in a big way. “But with the pressure they were putting on us, we knew the space was in the corners. We were trying to get it to the corners.

“We knew that they want to dribble at you. The way you defend dribbling at you is you just stay in front, and that’s what we kept doing.”

Arapahoe was making its second championship game appearance in three years, both times as the No. 12 seed.

Grandview will graduate a strong core of seniors who helped establish a dynasty within the program over the past five seasons.

“We’re going to miss this group of eight seniors,” Wood said. “A lot of times you don’t have a group of seniors where every single one of them starts and plays the whole entire time.”

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

May 23, 2019
Reece stands tall as Denver Christian win 2A girls soccer championship

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

COMMERCE CITY — Brad Homan struggled to find the words Tuesday night to sum up the performance the Denver Christian coach had just witnessed from his junior goalkeeper.

Through 110 minutes, Thunder junior Eden Reece was as close to brilliant as one can get at the position. Dawson School put immense pressure on the Thunder defense in the Class 2A state championship game at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. Reece turned away five shots in the second overtime alone, then snared two of the four balls that came here way in the shootout.

The final save of the night sent her Denver Christian teammates into a frenzy, celebrating the program’s fifth championship – and second in two years – after a 4-2 shootout victory over the Mustangs.

“That is one of the best games I’ve seen a goalie play in a state final in a long time,” Homan said of Reece. “She was phenomenal. She was lights out.”

Reece finished with 13 saves through regulation and two overtimes. Dawson (11-4) controlled the tempo for much of the night, and peppered the Thunder defense repeatedly in overtime. She made a diving snare in the first overtime, and among her stops in the second OT included a leap to tip the ball over the crossbar on a laser from Dawson’s Degen Miller.

“I had to stay really focused. It was hard,” Reece said. “There was no way I could stop to reset. I just had to keep going and going the whole time. It paid off because my defense was great and my midfield was great.”

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Denver Christian (16-2) came into the game down two starters. The Thunder managed only five shots on goal in the game.

“I challenged the girls, that on a big stage, you need a big heart,” Homan said. “My defenders had hearts of lions tonight.”

In the shootout, Reece got the ball rolling for the Thunder with the first penalty-kick conversion. Each team knocked home the first two chances, but Denver Christian’s Kara Amidon and Kaya Schaap made it 4-for-4 for the Thunder around two stops from Reece.

“I had so much confidence going into it,” Reece said. “It’s not a stressful situation for me. I can be there, and be like ‘I’ve got this. I know what I have to do.’”

Homan gave credit to the play of his line in front of Reece as well, from the keeper’s twin sister, Holland, to that of Sophie Bull, Anna Kaemingk and Kaitlyn Fitzgerald.

Holland Reece had one of the biggest plays in the first half. With the net open, the defender stopped a shot from Miller that deflected out of bounds.

On the ensuing corner kick, Holland Reece again made a stop to keep the game scoreless.

“They played amazing,” Eden Reece said of the defense. “Especially to have Holland, as my twin, saving my butt.”

Dawson was playing in its fifth consecutive 2A championship game. The Mustangs fell to Denver Christian in 2017 before winning its first title a year ago.

Tuesday night’s match was the rubber match between the two teams. Miller and Kaitlyn Day made life stressful for the Denver Christian defense all night – Miller especially, even after missing part of the second half with an injury.

“I’m proud of the whole team for the way they battled through challenges,” Homan said. “It’s so fun to play against Dawson. We have the utmost respect for that team; I have so much respect for Dave (Criswell) as a coach.”

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

May 22, 2019
Colorado Academy girls soccer finishes season on top with 3A state title

(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

COMMERCE CITY — Three years ago, Colorado Academy’s girls soccer team thought it was closing in on a three-peat, only to have those dreams dashed in the Class 3A state title game.

That’s why Tuesday night’s 3-0 victory over Jefferson Academy – giving the Mustangs their first championship since 2015 – meant a little bit more.

Winning one for the players who came before them, and doing it in convincing fashion at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, made the season that much more special.

“We’re really proud of this group, and I think it’s also important to know that there’s a lot of girls in our program over the last three years that wanted this,” Colorado Academy coach Sean Stedeford said. “They are every bit a part of this success of this team tonight.”

Mari Annest scored a pair of goals, the first one breaking a scoreless tie nearly nine minutes into the second half. That opened the door for Colorado Academy (19-1), with Annest scoring again in the 57th minute, and Catie Groves adding an insurance goal not even three minutes later.

It was a similar situation to the team’s semifinal victory over Prospect Ridge Academy, when Colorado Academy broke it open in the second half.

“I think this team has struggled a lot with kind of panicking if we can’t put it away quickly,” Annest said. “Once we can finally put a goal away, we get it in our heads that we can take this game.”

The victory avenged the team’s only loss this season. Jefferson Academy (17-2-1) took the first matchup, but as Stedeford noted, going up against league opponents in the postseason is common in the Metro League.

The Jaguars were the third league opponent for the Mustangs in the postseason. It marked the fourth time in five years that two Metro teams made the championship.

Annest, the Northwestern University-bound senior who led the team with 37 goals coming into the game, put Colorado Academy on her back in the second half. After Jefferson Academy was whistled for a foul and issued a yellow card, Annest lined up for a direct free kick some 10 yards outside the box.

Annest curved her shot into the right side of the goal, eluding Jaguars goalie Brooklyn Kirkpatrick.

“I’ve been pretty solid on set pieces right outside the box for most of the season,” Annest said. “I saw it, I knew where I wanted to put it, and got lucky, maybe? The keeper got a touch, but I was so incredibly excited it went in.”

Annest struck again with more than 23 minutes remaining, sending a laser shot past Kirkpatrick.

She said she knew one was coming Tuesday night.

“She’s a really talented player,” Stedeford said. “She added a whole different dynamic into our group this season. The seniors in general led from the front tonight.”

Groves capped the scoring midway through the half.

“We always try to get the first goal,” Stedeford said. “We knew the first goal was going to be important in a game of this magnitude. Similar to the semifinal, when the first goal went in, it sort of relaxed our group.”

For the seniors, going out on top helped erase the string of coming up one game short in their first season.

“This has been a long time coming,” Annest said. “I was in this game freshman year, we lost to Kent (Denver) that year. We always knew this was where we wanted to be again.”

(Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

May 22, 2019
4A girls soccer: Cheyenne Mountain and Evergreen advance to championship

(Adam Hothersall/CHSAANow.com)

AURORA — No. 21 seed Cheyenne Mountain defeated No. 8 Silver Creek to reach the Class 4A girls soccer championship game on Saturday.

The contest started with Cheyenne Mountain outshooting Silver Creek, 3-0 before a lightning delay just 7:27 in halted action.

Two more delays occurred before the end of the half, and when play finally resume, Cheyenne Mountain struck with 7:06 remaining on senior Lisa Long’s score from senior Emma Hanson’s perfect assist.

“It was pretty tough,” Cheyenne Mountain coach Nikkie Athey said postgame about the three 30-minute weather delays. “We were just sitting there, but they picked it up. When it comes down to it, I’m a cheerleader, and they’re players. They finished it. It’s unbelievable. Absolutely incredible. We had our struggles at the beginning, and now we are getting into our stride. These girls are amazing and fought so hard. They deserve it.”

With a shot advantage of 10-1 at the half, Cheyenne Mountain controlled the flow and time of possession by a sizeable margin. As the shortened halftime came to a close, Silver Creek put up quite the fight in the second half.

Outshooting Cheyenne Mountain 6-4 in the second frame, Silver Creek found their offensive rhythm, but solid defense from CM didn’t allow SC to find the back of the net.

The goal from Long held, and Cheyenne Mountain now looks for its first state title since 2015. They were 4A state champions 2013-2015.

“It’s honestly all so crazy,” Long said. “At the beginning of the season, no one would have thought we would have gotten here. We have a new coach, and we have a lot of younger girls, so it’s really exciting and a little surreal. Honestly, everyone loves a good underdog, and we are just trying to deliver and our season didn’t show the type of team we were, but every single girl on this team works so hard every single day. We never give up, and that’s why we are here.”

Playing through injury, Long and the group’s other seven seniors look to accomplish a dream set long ago with a state championship Wednesday at 5 p.m.

“This has been a dream of mine since I was little. I always came to all of the state games watching the Cheyenne girls play and win a bunch,” Long said. “It’s out of this world to be able to play in my own state game and hopefully get another title for our school.”

[divider]

Evergreen 3, Sand Creek 1

(Adam Hothersall/CHSAANow.com)

No. 3 Evergreen advanced to the title game after their 3-1 win over No. 7 Sand Creek.

As the physical play of both group’s displayed themselves throughout the afternoon, possession wasn’t easy for either group to sustain.

Splitting time through the first half, Evergreen tallied one more shot (5-4) than Sand Creek, and that one extra attempt proved to be the difference. On a sprint, freshman Elizabeth Rapp dropped in a beautiful shot to the top right corner of the net to give the Cougars a one-goal advantage; a lead they never gave up.

Heading to halftime down one, Sand Creek came out with a different energy to start the second. Controlling time of possession with two more shots than Evergreen the first eight minutes, the Scorpions pushed Evergreen’s defense and senior goaltender Sarah Straut.

However, the Cougars got back to their first-half offensive rhythm as freshmen Catherine and Rami Rapp showcased their speed on the front line, attempting multiple close shots.

Despite the relentless attack, SC sophomore goaltender Alexia Montero kept coming up with clutch save after clutch save, including a diving stop to preserve the one-goal deficit with 30 minutes remaining.

Finally, to put things away, goals from Rapp (with 7:47 left) and sophomore Myla Stewart extended the Cougars’ lead to three with 4:22 left.

Sand Creek got on the board with 26 seconds left on sophomore Sydney Lasater’s goal, but on the day the Cougars attempted 13 shots to Sand Creek’s nine.

Evergreen looks to win their first 4A state title since 1997 on Wednesday against No. 21 Cheyenne Mountain.

May 18, 2019
3A girls soccer: Colorado Academy, Jefferson Academy advance to championship

(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)

ENGLEWOOD — It’ll come down to Colorado Academy and Jefferson Academy in the championship of the Class 3A girls soccer state tournament.

Colorado Academy edged Prospect Ridge Academy 2-0, then Jefferson Academy followed with its own 2-0 win over Kent Denver.

Jefferson Academy beat Colorado Academy earlier this year, 1-0. The two teams will play for the Class 3A title Wednesday, 7 p.m. at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

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(1) Colorado Academy 2, (13) Prospect Ridge Academy 0

(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Mari Annest knocked it in off the post to open it up. Then, Maya Pellegrini added the dagger three minutes later to send Colorado Academy to the Class 3A title game.

“It was about time we put one away,” Annest said after the game. “It was great service from (Pellegrini).”

Pellegrini was active offensively, trying multiple times to set Annest up with an opportunity.

Colorado Academy advanced with a controlled attack, continually chipping away — sometimes quite literally — at the goal. Including Annest’s goal off the post, the Mustangs heard the clang of the crossbar and posts four separate times.

“It was definitely a really frustrating first half,” Annest said. “We were putting a lot of pressure on ourselves and rushing forward.”

All it took to ease the frustration was a talk from head coach Sean Stedeford at halftime.

“At halftime, our coaches talked to us about calming down and playing our game,” Annest said. “We play a really good possession-style soccer, and that actually led to us getting that corner.”

And all it took to fully erase the frustration was the result of that corner — an Annest header off the near post and into the back of the net. It was her 37th goal of the season.

“Not just from a coaching standpoint, but from a team standpoint, it sort of calmed the nerves a little bit of like, ‘Ok, we’re alright,” Stedeford said.

After making its way to the Class 3A semifinals with two double-overtime wins in a row, Prospect Ridge Academy couldn’t find the goal against a rock-solid Colorado Academy defense.

“We’re incredibly organized,” Annest said. “Our defenders, midfielders, and goalkeeper do an amazing job. They’re super organized in the back. They’ve been super solid all year, so props to them.”

This season, Colorado Academy (18-1) has allowed just five goals in 19 games.

Colorado Academy threatened early and often, starting with an opportunity in the 13th minute by Pellegrini. Pellegrini got in on goal, but Prospect Ridge Academy’s Linda Leahy stopped her shot.

Colorado Academy and Pellegrini continued to apply pressure in the 16th minute. Pellegrini set up Annest with a cross in front of the net, but Leahy stoned Annest.

Leahy had 20 saves in the semifinal game.

“We had a great lions share of the possession,” Stedeford said. “Had great attempts on goal, couple big time saves, couple posts. That first half could be completely different.”

The Mustangs continued their offensive flurry in the second half as Britt Lochhead’s shot hit off the far post, and minutes later Catie Groves sent a shot off the crossbar in the 51st minute. Lochhead continued the barrage on the goalposts with a header off a corner kick straight into the crossbar.

Colorado Academy beat Prospect Ridge Academy 10-0 in April. The Mustangs were played much closer earlier in the season against the two teams on the other side of the bracket, Kent Denver and Jefferson Academy. Colorado Academy came away with a 2-0 win against Kent Denver, and lost 1-0 to Jefferson Academy (the Mustangs’ only loss this year).

“Prospect Ridge put up a big time fight,” Stedeford said. “That was a bit unexpected for our girls, but I think the resilience that that group had shown in previous rounds came through today.”

Colorado Academy last played in the championship in 2016 — a 3-1 loss to Kent Denver.

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(3) Jefferson Academy 2, (2) Kent Denver 0

(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Jefferson Academy beat Kent Denver 2-0 in a rematch of last year’s Class 3A championship game that went to penalty kicks.

Sarah Spitz wasted no time as she squeezed a shot through the hands of Mika Fisher in the fifth minute after the Jaguars were flying into the box, peppering the Kent Denver goal.

Taylor Franco extended the Jefferson Academy lead to 2-0 toward the end of the first half. Minutes later, Brooklynn Kirkpatrick made a terrific diving save off of a deflected shot in the 40th minute to keep the 2-0 Jefferson Academy lead heading into halftime.

The Jaguars survived yet another Kent Denver attack in the second half to keep the shutout with a shot off the crossbar, a rebounded shot, and eventually a kick-save from a defender.

The early attack from Jefferson Academy held up and advanced the Jaguars into the title game.

Kent Denver beat Jefferson Academy 1-0 in the first meeting between the two teams.

May 18, 2019
5A girls soccer: Grandview, Arapahoe to meet in all-Centennial title game

(Brian Miller/CHSAANow.com)

PARKER – Two years ago, Arapahoe’s girls soccer team made the Class 5A state championship game as a No. 12 seed before falling just short of the school’s 10th title.

This Wednesday night, the Warriors will find themselves in the same position, but with a chance at redemption. For the second time in three years Arapahoe made the 5A title game as the 12th seed, and will have another go at a 10th crown when it faces Centennial League rival Grandview at 7 p.m. at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City.

The defending champion Wolves defeated No. 14 Ralston Valley 1-0.

“The senior group that we have this year learned so much from that crew,” Warriors coach Mark Hampshire said after his team weathered a 75-minute lightning delay and overcame a second-half deficit to defeat Rocky Mountain 3-2 on Saturday in the 5A semifinals at EchoPark Stadium.

“They watched the camaraderie, they watched the work ethic. They watched them have a lot of fun. The culture that we have here at Arapahoe really kind of feeds season to season – we don’t start new. We just kind of reload.”

Lauren Walter scored both the tying goal and the game-winner for Arapahoe (15-3-1) with less than 12 minutes remaining Saturday. The Warriors had tied the semifinal up at 2-2 in the 60th minute, benefiting from an own goal after Walter’s shot was deflected into the net by a Rocky Mountain defender.

Eight minutes later Walter found the back of the net after a strong throw-in from teammate Ryan Renshaw.

“It was all Ry Renshaw’s throw-in. She has a really big arm, and so we all just kind of wanted it,” Walter said. “We’ve been practicing all season for getting the head on and getting the flick. So when she threw it and some of the defenders missed it, I knew it was wide open. I just went for it.”

Arapahoe twice fell behind the Lobos Saturday on similar plays. Rocky Mountain (13-5-1) scored both of its goal off corner kicks, with Madison Hand heading both balls into the back of the net after Warriors goalkeeper Grace Cadorette made spectacular saves that led to the set pieces.

Hand’s second goal came only five minutes after the teams were forced into the locker room for a pair of lightning delays. The teams were two minutes from resuming play after the first delay, only to have to exit the field for another lightning strike in the vicinity.

When play resumed, Hand broke free and had a one-on-one opportunity that a diving Cadorette deflected out. Hand followed that up with a strong finish off the set piece.

“After Grace made such a great save, to kind of lose a little mental focus – in our game, all it takes is one mental breakdown, and it can change the game,” Hampshire said. “Great credit to Rocky Mountain. They are a fantastic team. They obviously work on their set pieces – probably the best we’ve seen so far this year.”

Hand and Arapahoe’s Audrey Weiss scored off set pieces midway through the first half, with Weiss’ goal coming just 41 seconds after the Lobos took the lead.

Arapahoe hasn’t won a state championship since 2006, falling in the title game in 2010 and 2017. The boys team won the 5A crown last fall after defeating Grandview.

“It’s a lot of fun to see the girls be resilient and be a bright spot for the school,” Hampshire said. “They’ve worked so hard. We went through a hard spot with three losses in a row, and the seniors in particular – great leadership from all of them – they said ‘hey, we’re not finishing this way.’”

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Wolves seeking fourth title in five years

(Brian Miller/CHSAANow.com)

It took a while to penetrate a stingy Ralston Valley defense, but the ball finally bounced the way of Shalom Prince and her Grandview teammates.

Prince had a shot stopped in the 53rd minute of the second half, but the rebound went right back to the senior. Prince took advantage of the empty net, giving the Wolves the lead and the eventual 1-0 victory over 14th-seeded Ralston Valley on Saturday.

Grandview (16-2-1) will have the chance to defend its title Wednesday night and go for a fourth 5A title in five years when it plays Arapahoe at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

“A lot of our stuff is on following the shots,” Prince said. “When you hit it, you just look for the next one because you just expect it to miss anyways. It was just lucky that it came right in front of me and I was able to put it away.”

Ralston Valley (13-4-2) was up to the task against Grandview’s offense. Mustangs sophomore keeper Lilly VanAlsburg finished with seven saves, but Ralston Valley struggled to find its own chances against Grandview’s defense until midway through the second half.

The Mustangs put four shots on goal down the stretch, but Wolves keeper Maddie Livingston turned them all away.

“When you score and you’re up, you get a little bit tight,” Grandview coach Tari Wood said. “We stopped possessing and doing a little bit of the stuff that we were doing so well. They got pretty determined and started running through the ball a little bit more than we did at the beginning.”

Grandview and Arapahoe played to a 2-2 tie back on April 2.

“Looking back now, I don’t mind that it was a tie,” Wood said. “It’s hard to beat a team two times in a row. It’s an even match for us.”

May 18, 2019
2A girls soccer: Dawson and Denver Christian advance to championship game

DENVER — For the third consecutive season, it’ll come down to Dawson and Denver Christian to decide the Class 2A girls soccer title.

Each school won in Wednesday’s semifinal round, with Dawson beating Crested Butte 5-1, and Denver Christian topping Cornerstone Christian 2-0.

The title match is set for 5 p.m. next Tuesday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.

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(2) Dawson 5, (6) Crested Butte 1

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Less than four minutes in, Kate Gallop took a deep breath, walked off the field, grabbed some water, and stared down a penalty kick.

“It was definitely one of those moments, where I was like, ‘OK, I need to remove myself from where I’m at. I need to just breathe in,’” the senior goalkeeper at Dawson said.

She made the save, and seized momentum in the process. Dawson scored the opening goal of its semifinal against Crested Butte 15 minutes later, and went on to win 5-1.

It was that save which proved to be the spark for the Mustangs.

Gallop has spent extra time working on PKs during recent practices. Coach Dave Criswell estimated that she’s taken at least 300 over the past four or five days.

She said it helped her confidence in that moment on Wednesday evening.

“I just treated it like practice,” she said. “We’ve definitely been shooting a lot of PKs. I was so used to the setup — and my coach had even used a whistle in practice, just to get into the routine of it, know what’s going to happen. Everyone’s been getting really great at taking them, and so I have to get better at stopping them because they’re better shots.”

Said Criswell: “The last four years, I’ve never see a player work harder at her craft than Kate. And to see where she’s come, it’s awesome. … It was just so fulfilling to see her save that. Those are obviously a boost to the team. We picked the momentum up there.”

Degen Miller’s right foot broke a scoreless tie 15 minutes after the save. The Dawson sophomore added a second goal later in the first half, and senior Cameron Epstein scored twice early in the second half.

“We’ve been talking about the first 10 minutes of every game, and every half, should be the highest intensity we can,” Criswell said. “It was awesome to see. They kept it going the whole time. They’re driven.”

Miller’s first goal came after she cut toward midfield and lofted a shot from 24 yards out with 21:16 to play in the first half. It went over the head of Crested Butte goalkeeper Anika Andersen and found the back of the goal.

She added to the lead a little more than 15 minutes later with a second goal. It was her 31st goal of the season, and fifth of the postseason. She now has 10 multi-goal games this season.

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Epstein gave her team a 3-0 lead with 30:27 left, and Crested Butte had a quick answer: Tess Fenerty’s long shot cut the lead to 3-1 a minute later.

But Dawson had an answer of its own. Epstein scored again, this time with 28:27 to play, made it 4-1. She now has 20 goals this season.

Dawson’s Kaitlyn Day scored with 7:32 to play to account for the final score.

The two teams hadn’t met since the semifinal round last season, a 3-0 Dawson win.

This will be the fifth-consecutive appearance in a championship game for Dawson, which has been to every title match since 2A was created in 2015. The Mustangs are defending champions.

“Having a target on our backs has been a lot,” Gallop said. “Every team when they’re playing us, they bring their A game, they’re really prepared. But it’s also helped us get better, I think, and helped us stay motivated because we know we can’t have an off day. We can’t stay where we’re at. We have to keep getting better, too, as other people keep getting better around us.”

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(1) Denver Christian 2, (5) Cornerstone Christian 0

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

In a tight game, Grace Phillipps broke through with a goal early in the second half, and Denver Christian’s defense did the rest en route to a semifinal win.

The Thunder beat Cornerstone Christian 2-0 to reach the 2A title game for the third consecutive season.

Denver Christian controlled possession much of the first half, and created a number of chances — including a shot off the post — but nothing broke through.

Until, that is, Phillips’ goal, which came 1:08 into the second half.

Holland Reece added a goal with under two minutes to go to seal the win.

It was the team’s second meeting this season. Denver Christian won 5-1 on April 15.

May 16, 2019