D’Evelyn 1, Valor Christian 0
D’Evelyn players celebrate after the conclusion of a 1-0 victory over rival Valor in the 4A girls soccer state semifinals Saturday at Shea Stadium. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
HIGHLANDS RANCH — It will go down as the biggest goal to date in the history of D’Evelyn’s girls soccer program.
Junior Anna Wright hammered a slow shot past Valor Christian junior goalie Alexandra Daws with 2:13 left in regulation time Saturday afternoon in the Class 4A semifinals at Shea Stadium. Wright’s goal broke a scoreless tie and the No. 4-seeded Jaguars went on to defeat Jeffco League rival and top-seed Eagles 1-0.
D’Evelyn sophomore Bella Scaturro, left, clears the ball away from Valor’s Brianna Johnson. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“When Laryssa (Hamblen) crossed it I knew this was our chance. We had to get this,” Wright said after the game-winning goal sent D’Evelyn (14-3-1 record) to its first girls soccer state championship game in the program’s history. “I saw the keeper coming up and I hit it in the corner.”
The game-winning goal started with D’Evelyn senior Emma Denton winning a ball at midfield. Denton was able to get the ball to Hamblen on the wing. The Jaguars’ leading goal scorer made her run down the right sideline before centering the ball to Wright.
“I’m just so excited right now,” Hamblen said. “I saw Anna running through. I trust her enough that she was going to place it right in past the keeper.”
The perfect shot punched the Jaguars’ ticket to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park for the 4A title game at 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 24, against another conference rival in Evergreen. D’Evelyn had two previous trips to the state semifinals which both ended in defeat.
D’Evelyn players celebrate after a goal from junior Anna Wright in the 78th minute. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“It’s amazing. It’s great,” D’Evelyn coach Paul Moline said. “If there is a team that deserves it it’s these girls. They have really put the work in.”
Valor has made four previous trips to the 4A state championship game, winning its lone state title in girls soccer in 2011. Saturday’s loss was just the second defeat of the season for the Eagles (16-2), who won the 4A Jeffco League this season beating both 4A finalists — D’Evelyn and Evergreen — during regular season.
“It was a fantastic game to be apart of. I’m really proud of our Jeffco League with three of us in the Final 4,” Valor coach Brian Shultz said. “I’m incredibly proud of my girls. They battled fiercely today.”
Valor senior Camryn Dyke had a pair of direct free kicks in the final 10 minutes that were saved by D’Evelyn sophomore goalie Kiera Hess.
The Eagles were without senior Tess Boade for the semifinal. The future Duke University product was training with the US Soccer National U-19 team for a week and had just returned to Colorado. According to Shultz, there is a 48-hour period where national players have to wait to return to play for their high school team.
Evergreen 2, Windsor 1
Evergreen senior Sofia Weiner fires a shot on goal during the first half Saturday at Shea Stadium. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
Rocket shots from Evergreen’s Elise Adreon and Sofia Weiner in the first half Saturday afternoon was enough to send the Cougars to their first girls soccer state championship game in 20 years.
No. 7 Evergreen took a 2-1 victory over No. 6 Windsor at Shea Stadium in the second 4A girls soccer state semifinal. The Cougars (12-6) now face rival D’Evelyn in the championship game Wednesday.
Evergreen’s McKenna Norton (3) and Windsor’s Riley Bliesmer (14) battle for the ball. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“Honestly, at this point I don’t care who our opponent is,” said Evergreen senior Sofia Weiner, who scored the eventual game-winning goal in the 24th minute. “I’m happy for D’Evelyn. It’s good to see two Jeffco teams facing each other in the final. That’s really awesome.”
Weiner’s shot that gave Evergreen a 2-0 lead was really awesome too. The future University of Virginia product fired a shot from the right flank outside the goal box before Windsor defenders could close in. The ball was placed perfectly under the cross bar on the far post.
Despite the diving effort of Windsor junior goalie Michaela Moran, Weiner goal gave the Cougars their second goal in 12 minutes.
“I’ve actually been working all season on putting my balls far post,” Weiner said. “Finally, it came out in the perfect moment. I couldn’t have asked for a better shot honestly.”
Adreon had put the Cougars up on the Wizards (17-2) with a hard shot on the ground that got through Moran in the 12th minute.
Evergreen’s Elise Adreon, left, and Sofia Weiner (14) scored the two goals for the Cougars in the 2-1 semifinal win. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
Even with the 2-goal deficit, Windsor put a lot of pressure on the Cougars’ defense to end the first half. However, the Wizards couldn’t cut into Evergreen’s lead until putting in a penalty kick in the 77th minute.
“I’ve got to tip my hat to that Windsor team. They never quit,” Evergreen coach Peter Jeans said. “They made us sweat a lot in the end.”
Windsor senior Riley Bliesmer put in the PK with three minutes to play. What was helpful for the Cougars it they faced a similar situation in the quarterfinals against Wheat Ridge. The Farmers scored with three minutes to play to cut Evergreen’s lead to 2-1.
“I was just saying that we needed to stay composed,” Evergreen senior captain and defender Kate Athenour said to her team after Bliesmer’s goal. “We couldn’t panic at that moment. We needed to stay calm and get the ball out.”
Windsor had one last scoring chance on a direct free kick from junior Julia Broghammer that was cleared away in the 78th minute.
“It’s unbelievable. I can’t even describe it. It kind of feels like it’s not really happening. It’s incredible,” said Athenour, who graduated at the Denver Coliseum with the rest of Evergreen’s seniors less than 24 hours from defeating Windsor. “We worked so hard as a team to get this far. We are ready to come swinging hard in that next game.”
Evergreen has two state championships under its belt. The Cougars claimed the 4A state crown in 1997 and won the title in 1990 when there was just one classification.
“I feel like we’ve played better each game in this playoff run,” Jeans said. “Obviously for the next game we’ll have to play even better because we are playing another unbelievable team.”
Evergreen defeated D’Evelyn during league play 3-2. Weiner had a pair of goals and junior Lauryn Jeans had the third goal for the Cougars.
“I know the nerves are going to get to me, but I can’t wait to play in that environment,” Athenour said of playing at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on Wednesday with a state championship on the line.
Evergreen celebrates a first-half goal in a 2-1 victory over Windsor on Saturday in the 4A girls soccer semifinals. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)