COMMERCE CITY — Lily Boydstun shook off her pain and helped deliver a Class 5A state soccer championship to the Mountain Vista Golden Eagles on Wednesday night at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
The senior midfielder left the game with 18:19 remaining due to leg cramps so severe she couldn’t stand. But after getting treatment on the bench, the Arkansas commit re-entered the game to deliver a perfect corner kick to junior Laney Erickson, who side-kicked in the only goal in Mountain Vista’s 1-0 victory over Rock Canyon.
The Golden Eagles (18-0-1) captured their fifth title, their first since 2017.
“We knew we had to put everything on the line for that goal, and we did,” Erickson said. “I knew after we scored that goal that we had the game in the bag. We just had to finish the last 13 minutes. We know we are strong on corner kicks, and Lily puts in a great ball every time.”
Boydstun said she’s had practice coming back from leg cramps.
“They were so bad, and it just took me down,” she said. “But I get them so often. I just have to go out, stretch, and get fluids, and come back in. … I guess I need to hydrate better.”
It was expected to be a close game. After all, the two Continental League rivals played to a scoreless draw on April 29.
“We knew it was going to be a tremendous match, and it was,” coach Theresa Echtermeyer said. “You have to look at times and spaces in the field when you can create scoring opportunities and I thought we did a really good job of that tonight.”
Still, Mountain Vista dominated most of the game and pressed the action throughout the second half, leaving the Jaguars with scant opportunities to score. The Jags’ best chance came with 25:15 remaining when senior midfielder Grace Rossner got an open look, but her shot from about 25 yards out sailed wide.
Boydstun, the fastest, most nimble player on the pitch, nearly gave the Golden Eagles a first-half lead. With 19 minutes left in the half, she lasered a shot from about 30 yards out that caromed off the left post.
“It was close. I swore it was going in,” she said, holding her fingers inches apart to illustrate how close it was.
Late in the half, the Golden Eagles scored on a gorgeous play, with Boydstun feeding Erickson for a bang-bang goal. The problem was that Erickson was flagged for offsides, and the goal was waved off.
Rock Canyon had another opportunity to score on a free kick with just under 20 minutes left in the half. The Jaguars got two headers on the ball, just in front of the goal, but Mountain Vista keeper Casey Loughran snuffed out the chance.
No. 1 seed Mountain Vista defeated No. 8 seed Pine Creek, 1-0, and No. 5 seed Ralston Valley, 1-0, to gain a chance at another state title.
No. 3 seed Rock Canyon advanced past No. 11 seed Castle View, 2-1, and shut out No. 10 seed Heritage, 3-0, to reach the championship game. The Jaguars (14-1-5) were hunting their first girls soccer state championship, though Rock Canyon has finished as the runner-up three times, including twice in the last three seasons (2023 and 2021).
Flatirons wins 2A crown
Annabelle Rakers found a sliver of daylight, received a touch pass from Abby Downey, and chipped in the winning goal to give the No. 1 Flatiron Academy Bison a 2-1 double-overtime victory over No. 7 Buena Vista in the Class 2A championship.
Rakers’ winning goal came in the 108th minute of a tight and tense match.
“This was definitely a mental challenge for us tonight, but we hung in there,” Rakers said.
Rakers, a junior, tied the game, 1-1, with 23:16 left in the second half. She got behind Buena Vista’s defense and lined a shot into the corner of the net.
“Annabelle provided us that spark of energy tonight, and she has improved so much this year,” coach Amy Downey said.
Downey said that the Bisons’ first title was dedicated to all the girls who have played in the program.
“What this means to me is that all of the athletes over the last 11 years that I’ve been coaching, this is for them as well,” she said. “Our program was built by each one of the players who came through here. We only had 11 players on the roster 11 years ago. This is about the work ethic they built over the years, and we got to capitalize on it tonight.”
Buena Vista was the more aggressive team in the first half and took a 1-0 lead on a sweet goal by sophomore Mae Blazer. She dodged two defenders and then left-footed the ball into the net.
Flatirons (16-1-1) not only won its first state soccer title, it also made the Final Four for the first time. The Bison routed the No. 8 Dawson School, 8-0, in the quarterfinals and then edged No. 4 Crested Butte, 3-2, to reach the finals.
Buena Vista (14-4) defeated No. 2 Denver Christian, 4-2, and No. 6 Colorado Springs Christian, 1-0, to earn its first trip to the state championship game. BV was eliminated in the quarterfinals last season.
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