Ralston Valley sophomore Alyssa Kaiser (24) hugs fellow sophomore Emma Musson (9) after the Mustangs’ first-half goal Tuesday at the North Area Athletic Complex. Ralston Valley scored a 3-0 victory over Boulder to advance to the second round of the Class 5A state tournament (Dennis Pleuss)
ARVADA — Ralston Valley soccer players were in the right place at the right time when sophomore Alyssa Kaiser was putting shots goal Tuesday at the North Area Athletic Complex.
Sophomore Emma Musson and senior Janelle Feldmann both knocked in rebounds off shots from Kaiser shots in the first round of the Class 5A girls’ soccer state tournament.
“I just shot the ball as hard and I could. Hopefully it would go in or go off the keeper,” said Kaiser after the No. 10-seeded Mustangs took a 3-0 victory over the No. 23-seeded Boulder Panthers. “We talked about shooting outside the box a lot.”
Ralston Valley broke a scoreless tie late in the first half capitalizing on a hard shot from Kaiser that Boulder freshman goalie Faviola Morquecho couldn’t keep in her grasp. Musson was able to calmly settle the ball off the rebound then fire a shot past Morquecho with just 33.6 seconds left in the first half.
Ralston Valley sophomore Alyssa Kaiser (24) works against Boulder senior Sarah Radzihovsky (1) on Tuesday during the Class 5A girls soccer first-round playoff game at the North Area Athletic Complex. (Dennis Pleuss)
“Alyssa played harder, smarter and more unselfish tonight than I’ve ever seen her play,” Ralston Valley coach Kamee Morwood said of her sophomore standout. “She changed the entire game for us. She gave us the opportunities. She put the team on her shoulders.”
The Mustangs took a 1-0 lead into halftime after a wild final four minutes of the first half that full of scoring opportunities for Ralston Valley and Boulder.
The Panthers nearly put in an own-goal in the 36th minute. Morquecho had to tip the arrant clearing attempt over the cross bar. Kaiser dodged past a couple of Boulder defenders a minute later, but her shot hit the far post and was cleared.
Then it was the Panthers chance to get on the scoreboard. A good run by senior Sarah Radzihovsky got the ball deep into Ralston Valley’s defensive zone, but junior goalie Renee Roemer was able to make the save on Boulder senior Carin Cleveland in the 38th minute.
Musson’s goal with less than a minute left before halftime finally broke the scoreless tie.
“Boulder is a great team. We were looking for that one aspect that would change it before half and we found it,” Feldmann said. “We were able to go into the second half with some confidence and fire.”
Feldmann’s goal came in the 59th minute to give the Mustangs (13-3) a 2-0 lead. For the second time Kaiser hit the cross bar with a shot, but Feldmann was there to put the ball into the net.
“We’ve missed a lot of those this season against teams we’ve lost to on rebounds we weren’t there for,” Morwood said. “We really talked about it going into this game.”
Ralston Valley senior Shae Sellers (3) looks back for the ball as Boulder senior Sarah Radzihovsky (1) takes a spill Tuesday at the North Area Athletic Complex. (Dennis Pleuss)
The Mustangs added an insurance goal in the 74th minute on a high shot by sophomore Alaina Snedden that beat Morquecho. Roemer picked up the shutout victory in net for the Mustangs.
Boulder had success at NAAC last year in the first round of the playoffs. The Panthers knocked off Arvada West 1-0 last year.
“We’ve seen what happens when you underestimate teams,” Feldmann said. “We knew it was going to be a tough game. Every team in the playoffs is going to be hard from here on out.”
Next up for Ralston Valley will be a second-round date with No. 7-seeded Cherry Creek. The Bruins (12-4) overcame a first-half deficit against Heritage on Tuesday to eventually take a 3-2 victory. The second-round game will be played Friday at Stutler Bowl.
Ralston Valley sophomore Emma Musson (9) fires a shot past Boulder junior Tessa Regnier during the first half Tuesday. (Dennis Pleuss)