Loveland Classical wins school’s first championship, and city’s first girls soccer title, with domination of Flatirons Academy

COLORADO SPRINGS The Lions just set the standard for girls soccer in Loveland and made school history in the process Loveland Classical won its first state championship in any sport on Wednesday at Weidner Field beating Flatirons Academy - in a Class A title challenge where the Lions dominated every facet It marked the first girls soccer title for the city of Loveland in just the eighth year of Loveland Classical s effort The Lions got two first-half goals within the opening six minutes from junior Abby Ruppert then delivered the knockout blow with a result by senior captain Emily Carman midway through the second half We pushed really hard at the beginning and we came out and decided we were going to win Ruppert explained We set the tone early and we never looked back We knew history was on the line and we weren t going to come up short One of Ruppert s first-half goals came via a short-hopped shot that Flatirons Academy keeper Sydnie Mangel appeared to think was going wide but instead went into the corner of the net Then Ruppert scored again about six minutes later on another short-hopped kick that went between Mangel s legs as she guarded the post Abby Ruppert Loveland Classical celebrates with her teammate Gigi Gonzalez after Ruppert scored a goal against Flatirons Academy in the first half of the girls A state soccer championship contest at Weidner Field in Colorado Springs Colorado on Wednesday May Photo by Andy Cross The Denver Post That was all the cushion the Lions who won two close matches to reach the championship needed Loveland Classical beat Colorado Springs Christian - in the quarterfinals then triumphed - in overtime over Forge Christian in the semis Lions fifth-year head coach Juan Orozco commented his organization s commitment to buying into the minutiae of the sport resulted in the championship It was the second time Loveland Classical beat Flatirons Academy this season the other a - win on April and the Lions defense was stout as keeper Keira Doan was hardly tested all match We really put an emphasis on technical work revealed Orozco who has coached in the Loveland Fort Collins area for years We worked on our passing movement possession being really disciplined with the short battle That s really worked for us over the past minimal years to get to the playoffs and it in the end brought us here At the -minute mark of the second half Carman put the trophy on ice She got a booming go ball that was sent from deep inside the Loveland Classical defensive territory outracing two Bison defenders to possess it and then left the Flatirons Academy defense in the dust to set up a one-on-one with Bison keeper Sophia Patrick Patrick took over in net for Flatirons Academy with minutes left in the first half after Mangel had to leave the tournament due to injury Mangel and junior Kaelyn Doan collided vying for a loose ball at the top of the box with Doan kneeing Mangel in the face The play drew a yellow card and left Mangel bleeding all over her jersey Flatirons Academy goalkeeper Sydnie Mangel left takes a knee to her face from Kaelyn Doan Loveland Classical in the first half of the girls A state soccer championship encounter at Weidner Field in Colorado Springs Colorado on Wednesday May Mangel was injured on the play and was taken off the field with help of trainers and coaches Photo by Andy Cross The Denver Post In Mangel s stead Patrick played well but had no chance on Carman s breakaway Carman crossed over the freshman to the right then drilled the ball home in the lower right part of the net My thought on that one was Don t miss ' Carman commented That play and winning this title was a great way for me to go out in my final match of soccer As Carman emphasized Wednesday s triumph might just be the start of the trophy accumulation at Loveland Classical which was founded in but has had varsity sports for a much shorter time Boys soccer boys basketball girls basketball we re already in the state running for girls and boys cross country with top finishes this year Loveland Classical athletic director Matt Begeman reported Volleyball is strong too I can t wait to see what happens next year and in the years to come Loveland Classical goalkeeper Keira Doan left and teammate Alexa Gonzalez celebrate after defeating the Flatirons Academy - winning the girls A state soccer championship meeting at Weidner Field in Colorado Springs Colorado on Wednesday May Photo by Andy Cross The Denver Post