4A girls soccer semifinals moved to Shea Stadium
Saturday’s Class 4A girls soccer semifinal games have been moved to Shea Stadium in Highlands Ranch.
Times for each game remain the same, at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
The games were originally scheduled to be hosted at EchoPark Stadium in Parker, but needed to be moved in order to accommodate Rock Canyon High School’s graduation. That ceremony was originally scheduled for 9 a.m. Friday, but has been moved to Saturday at 9 a.m. to avoid the inclement weather forecast, as well as the give them time to prepare the facility and remove snow.
Rock Canyon’s graduation wouldn’t be able to fit into Shea Stadium, which only has one side of bleachers.
Douglas County Schools district athletic director Derek Cheney worked on a contingency plan earlier this week to move the games if they needed to, and spoke with CHSAA assistant commissioner Bud Ozzello on Tuesday to communicate that plan.
“It’s the same size field, and there’s brand new turf at Shea,” Cheney said. “Colorado spring time, it’s hard to gauge all the time. We had a contingency plan, and had a little more flexibility for a graduation. We’ve been working on it since Monday and Tuesday, and were hoping for the best, but we were thinking it might happen.”
Valor Christian and D’Evelyn will play at 11 a.m. That game will be followed by Windsor and Evergreen, around 1:30 p.m.
“With inclement weather, we have adjust at times, and it’s difficult, but graduation at their home district stadium takes precedence,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bud Ozzello, who oversees soccer. “The pitch is the same, the goals are the same. Shea Stadium is a great facility.”
