WESTMINSTER — Tuesday afternoon proved yet again how teensy-tiny the margin of error is for boys soccer teams this pandemic season.
With loose masks among the things that were bounced around by a raging wind at North Stadium, the standings in the 5A Front Range League were too jostled about, following Legacy’s 1-0 loss to Fossil Ridge.
The Lightning (6-3) came into the day in a strong position to reach their sixth straight postseason with this year’s shrunken-down state tournament rearing its head next week. But a secure hold on the second and final automatic qualifying spot out of the FRL is now gone with the league’s landscape taking another dramatic shift.
“It’s difficult for everybody, not just us,” Legacy coach Anthony Romano said of the all-FRL regular season. “It’s game after game, especially in our league, of close games. It takes a toll on players, physically and emotionally. The guys worked hard tonight but the other team worked a little harder.”
Kian Creager’s 5th-minute goal held up for the Sabercats (6-2-1) on a day where the wind was so strong the game had to be briefly halted to readjust a whipped-off goal netting.
Now with a fourth straight win, Fossil Ridge momentarily moves into that second FRL postseason spot. Legacy, having its two-game win streak snapped, now goes down the standings with a third loss on the season.
Proving more how razor-tight things have been this spring, it was the eighth time in nine games the Lightning’s result was decided by just one goal. And even with a strong record out of them, the Lightning are currently among those vying for one of the classification’s only four at-large playoff bids.
“It’s a short season. It’s 10 games, and every game is do-or-die,” senior captain Andrew Sanchez said. “And we don’t know if there are playoff hopes in our future because of past results we’ve been getting.”
Sanchez helped man a heavy offensive push from Legacy in the final minutes. Among the frantic finish, he sent a free kick into the box and worked deep into the zone to set up a corner, but neither panned out. The Lightning then had two shots in the final minutes but one went high, and the other wide.
After the game, the two teams appeared to exchange heated words at midfield. The game had grown testy as it drew on.
“I think we had a hard time connecting the way we wanted to today,” Romano said. “A lot of credit to our opponent for sending bodies to the ball and disrupting our attack. They did a good job doing that. And I think there were some other things going on off the ball that made it hard for my guys to focus.”
Following the result, Rocky Mountain (5-2), Broomfield (5-2-1) and Boulder (4-2-1) also moved ahead of the Lightning with a better winning percentage, yet that will undoubtedly shift again with the rest of conference games later Tuesday night.
League-leading Fairview (6-0-1), meanwhile, continues to have a solid lead atop the conference going into its game against winless Mountain Range.
Legacy finishes the regular season at Horizon Thursday.
