Fort Collins boys soccer coach Jason Odorizzi has been cutting practices short lately.
Not because his team is tired, or because it’s getting dark earlier, but because his Lambkins have been so quick to reproduce their game-speed form.
“We’re having fun and playing good soccer as intelligent and as hard (in practice) as we are in the games,” Odorizzi said.
The ninth-seeded Lambkins (13-3-3) are after their first Class 5A state championship since 1990 when they face No. 7 – and defending champion – Smoky Hill (14-3-2) tonight at 7 p.m. at Five Star Stadium in Thornton.
Fort Collins, from the Northern League, flew under the radar for much of the season. The Lambkins lost 12 seniors to graduation and didn’t have their best players on the pitch until the last two regular-season games.
With midfielder Edgar Ramirez and Kris Banghart now in an attacking role after a stint on defense, the Lambkins have dismantled all comers with a fluid possession game.
“We had to get used to everybody playing a different style of game,” Odorizzi said of adding new faces late in the season. “The first few games we were struggling a little to get it down.”
Defensively, sophomore Alexander Deitz has been in charge of marking the opposition’s top striker. In goal, David Martin has been solid and Odorizzi predicted the senior, when tested, would “turn some heads” tonight.
A year after defeating Grandview in the snow, Smoky Hill returns, although mostly in name only.
The Buffaloes lost 10 seniors to graduation and are evolving from their direct play into a possession team under second-year coach Danny Winsor.
“We have very different talent than we did last year, neither better or worse,” Winsor said.
Winsor said his team has proved the doubters wrong by maturing faster than expected, which he credits in part to playing in the highly competitive Centennial League.
One important face that did return this season for the Buffaloes was All-Colorado goalie Miguel Rosales, a tall, athletic player who keeps his teammates organized.
The Buffaloes have strong attackers in Byron Cephers and Tyler Waggoner, but pride themselves on a versatile, deep roster that has a number of players who can make an impact.
With the similar styles and workmanlike approaches to the game, tonight’s final should be a study in similarities.
That being said, the midfield most likely will be the site of the most action and could be where the game is won or lost.
