Centennial – The Arapahoe Warriors turned the corner Wednesday afternoon.
Twice, actually.
Lindsay Stein did it first with a blistering run around the right side of the Fort Collins defense before she coolly slotted home a goal.
Kelly Menachof did it next, this turn around the left side with the same result, after a mild collision with goalie Liz Orton and defender Olivia Deadmond.
“We were able to get around the corner on them quite a bit,” Arapahoe coach Kirk Bast said with a hint of surprise after watching the fourth-seeded Warriors dismantle the No. 5 Lambkins 4-0 to advance to the Class 5A semifinals.
Menachof scored on either side of Stein’s goal to cap a nine-minute frenzy that had the Warriors up 3-0 by the 19th minute. Meredith Monson added another goal in the 53rd minute as the Warriors won their 11th straight game behind their fourth consecutive shutout and ninth of the season.
The Warriors (15-3) possessed the ball in the midfield long enough to send their forwards and outside midfielders on wide runs and dissect the Fort Collins backline.
“At practice we’ve been working a lot with getting out heads up and executing at high speed, and that’s exactly what we needed here,” said Menachof, who also hit the post with a shot in the 12th minute.
The Warriors return to the semifinals a season after losing in the state finals on penalty kicks to Mountain Vista. Arapahoe has eight state title in girls soccer, but none since 2000.
“We’re done with school now, so this is like all I have left and what I want to leave Colorado with,” said Stein, who will play at Georgia next season.
The Lambkins (15-2-1), who were riding a 14-game unbeaten streak, were the livelier team at the start and nearly scored in the seventh minute when Emmalie Pfankuch blasted a shot off the chest of goalie Katherine Liebetrau.
But giving up two goals in less than a minute, and playing without midfielder Tara Bailey (ankle), had the Lambkins in tatters until halftime.
“They scored that one goal and everybody got nervous,” Lambkins coach Jason Odorizzi said.
Fort Collins managed seven shots on goal, but most of them were long-range efforts.
Fort Collins 0 0 – 0
Arapahoe 3 1 – 4
Goals – Menachof (Bast), 10th minute; Stein (unassisted), 11th; Menachof (unassisted) 19th; Monson (Wilson) 53rd.
Shots on goal – Fort Collins 4-3 – 7; Arapahoe 8-1 – 9. Saves – Fort Collins (Orton) 5-0 – 5; Arapahoe (Liebetrau) 4-3 – 7. Corner kicks – Fort Collins 2-4 – 6; Arapahoe 3-0 – 3. Offsides – Fort Collins 0-0 – 0; Arapahoe 5-2 – 7. Fouls – Fort Collins 5-3 – 8; Arapahoe 2-5 – 7.
