Fort Collins boys soccer nets early-season upset over Mountain Vista
FORT COLLINS — The more time, the better for the boys soccer team from Fort Collins.
Even though their match started close to forty minutes late, the Lambkins took advantage of their extra time, taking it out on the field and upsetting the No. 10 Golden Eagles from Mountain Vista, 2-0.
The first half of the game was controlled by Fort Collins. The Lambkins strongest were almost in complete control of the ball; moving it, making runs — and most importantly scoring goals.
Fort Collins managed to score not one, but two goals within a minute of the twenty-seven minute mark of the first half. Senior Connor Lowdermilk scored the first goal with Max Arellano closely adding the second.
“It felt good,” Lowdermilk said. “First goal of the season, it’s just a nice accomplishment and I hope to build on it.”
Mountain Vista wasn’t able to finish its chances. When in the box, the Golden Eagles played as if they were overwhelmed and unable to properly read where their teammates were located.
Coach Theresa Echtermeyer said her team got stretched defensively during the first half and needs to work on “squeezing, becoming more compact and connecting the final pass.”
The half time break seemed to strongly impact both teams. Fort Collins came back confident, knowing it was on top, and Mountain Vista truly came together as a team and was ready to battle.
“Were very resilient and tough. We got back in and dug deep and battled through the rest of the game,” Echtermeyer said. “The fact that we did that says a lot about this team. This particular group has not played together a lot yet. I definitely believe in the kids, they are going to be great.”
After the first half, Mountain Vista’s sense of urgency kicked in and it was playing much more efficiently. The Golden Eagles kept trying to score, but it was not enough to get past the Fort Collins defense.
Lambkins coach Justin Stephens believes his team needs to work on their second half of the game in general.
“We came out flat,” Stephens said. “We were complacent and we need to stay on the pedal and finish the game.”
Mountain Vista came into this game knowing that it was going to be tough. The past two years the team has had two large graduating classes and are left with a somewhat new team. They now have the weekend off and will be able to rest before their last non-league game next week.
The Lambkins next game will be against Dakota Ridge on Sept. 8 on the Fossil Ridge turf. Stephens and his athletes have high expectations for themselves this season.
“I feel confident, I think we can go really far this season,” senior Jonal Ulery said.
