No. 10 Chatfield girls soccer ends Columbine’s domination of 5A Jeffco
LAKEWOOD — It took a perfect corner kick, followed by a pin-point placed header Wednesday night to end a five-year girls soccer dynasty in the Class 5A Jeffco League.
Chatfield — No. 10 in the CHSAANow.com 5A girls soccer rankings — ended rival and No. 7 ranked Columbine’s remarkable conference winning streak at 24 games at Lakewood Memorial Field.
“We had a little revenge tour after last year when we lost late to them last season,” Chatfield coach Brock Blume said of the Chargers’ 1-0 double-overtime loss a year ago. “Obviously it was time for someone else to get that (league) plaque and unseat their run.”
Junior Madi Reszetucha headed in a corner kick from senior Rylie Mullen into the back of the net in the 27th minute of the first half. The lone goal held up for a 1-0 victory in the conference finale for both teams.
“I knew I was going to score,” said Reszetucha, who came up from her middle back position on the corner kick. “I was just going for it and it went in.”
Reszetucha and sophomore Izzy Wildermuth had the task all night on having to limit one of the top goal scorers in 5A — Columbine senior Tessa Barton (20 goals) — from getting loose. Blume added that he wanted to put Reszetucha in position to make a difference on the offensive end too.
“She (Reszetucha) has been knocking on the door on those set pieces all year,” Blume said. “When you have a player of her stature you have to send her up.”
Mullen was also not in her normal role on the game-winning goal.
“I normally don’t take the corners, but I decided to take it,” Mullen said. “I always look for Madi’s head and she got it. That was the goal we needed.”
Chatfield (12-1-1, 7-0-1 in 5A Jeffco) celebrated with the conference plaque in hand on the chilly and damp night. The victory also prevented Columbine (10-4-1, 7-1) from winning a sixth straight league title.
“This is the most insane thing ever,” Mullen said. “All four years this has been our goal. This was the most fun game I’ve ever played in my entire life. Playing with my favorite people. This is the best feeling in the world. It’s crazy.”
It was the eighth straight victory for Chatfield after a league-opening scoreless tie against Ralston Valley nearly a month ago. The only loss this season for the Chargers was a 1-0 defeat against No. 6 Cherry Creek.
“Tonight was a playoff preview of what games are going to be like,” Blume said. “You need to find a way to get that goal and battle. You have those moments when girls have to step up.”
Finishing 1-and-2, Chatfield and Columbine earned the two automatic bids for the postseason from 5A Jeffco. It’s almost guaranteed that both will get first-round home playoff games when the tournament begins Tuesday, May 7.
The Rebels had gone undefeated through league play for three straight seasons. The last league blemish was a scoreless tie against rival Chatfield on April 20, 2016. The last conference loss was exactly four years ago, a 1-0 loss to Chatfield on May 1, 2015.
Columbine now sits and waits for the 5A state brackets to be released. CHSAA is scheduled to have the 32-team state tournament posted Monday, May 6.
“They (Rebels) are an amazing team and will have a great run in the (state) tournament, but we are looking to do the same,” Blume said.
Chatfield has one final non-league game against 4A’s No. 1 ranked team D’Evelyn (10-1-2, 4-0-2 in 4A Jeffco) at 4 p.m. Friday, May 3, at Chatfield Senior High School.
“It’s really nice that we have that,” Mullen said of the non-league game against D’Evelyn on Friday. “They are going to be good so it will be good going into playoffs.”
