ERIE \u2014 In a battle between two of Colorado\u2019s top Class 5A girls soccer teams, the underclassmen-led Legacy Lightning emerged victorious over Erie on Thursday evening.<\/p>\n
Freshman Ellie Mikolaj and sophomore Anaya Bursey each netted a goal, and fellow freshman Jacy Hibbeler assisted the latter in Legacy\u2019s 2-0 road win. Plus, sophomore goalkeeper Shayne Davey locked things down in net with her sixth shutout of the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have a high game understanding, which has been really fun,\u201d Legacy head coach Heather Solar said of her underclassmen. \u201cThey\u2019re coming from different, really good clubs, and they\u2019re buying into what I\u2019m trying to get them to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The second-ranked Lightning, which entered Thursday trailing only Fossil Ridge in the Class 5A CHSAA Selection & Seeding Index, improved to 10-0 overall following its first Granite Peaks League win of the season.<\/p>\n
No. 14 Erie fell to 7-2-1 (0-1 GPL), but junior Elodie Kirchoffner is optimistic that the Tigers can build on a strong second half.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we definitely locked in in the second half and worked our butts off and didn\u2019t make them score again, which is nice,\u201d said Kirchoffner, the Tigers\u2019 leading goal-scorer with eight on the year. \u201cI think we put up a good game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just over 12 minutes into the first half, Hibbeler assisted Busey for the game\u2019s opening goal. About five minutes later, the Lightning struck again on Mikolaj\u2019s third goal of the year.<\/p>\n
Hibbeler, Busey and Mikolaj may get all the credit in the box score, but much of Legacy\u2019s success revolves around center back Kalei Hollingsworth. The sophomore has made a habit of winning contested balls and setting up Legacy\u2019s offense for scoring looks.<\/p>\n
\u201cI try to be really vocal and try to communicate with people; I think that\u2019s a huge part,\u201d Hollingsworth said. \u201cAlso, I try to go win every single 50\/50 ball, anything that comes my way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Solar added that she was proud of Hollingsworth and the rest of her underclassmen for stepping up against a challenging Erie team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re really young this year, so I\u2019m really proud of them,\u201d Solar said. \u201cWe knew this would be a tough competition, and the girls came out and performed.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Erie managed a couple of competitive shots on goal in the second half, Legacy\u2019s defense held strong in the final 40 minutes. On the season, the Lightning has now outscored its opponents 38-4.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re always working hard to get the ball, and we don\u2019t complain,\u201d Hollingsworth said. \u201cWe just have a good attitude and mindset about everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Legacy will face another difficult test Tuesday when it hosts Fairview.<\/p>\n
As for second-year head coach Laura Munnelly and the Tigers, they\u2019ll visit Monarch on Tuesday. Along with Kirchoffner, junior Taylin Maynes and sophomore Annabel Mydlowski, who\u2019ve combined for 11 goals on the year, will look to help Erie bounce back.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, it\u2019s not what we wanted, but hopefully we can pick ourselves back up again and win the next game,\u201d Kirchoffner said.<\/p>\n