LAKEWOOD — Geneva Gray thought her goal was the one that would get the party started Wednesday against Bear Creek.
It turned out to be a lifesaver.
Gray’s goal in the 15th minute at Lakewood Memorial Field was all No. 3 Chatfield could muster in its 1-0 Class 5A Jefferson County League victory over the Bears.
“I was really expecting us to come here out and score a lot of goals in this game,” Gray said.
The Chargers (5-0-0, 1-0-0 Jeffco) had their customary dynamic attack, but the Bears (2-3-1, 0-2-0) blunted the majority of that through tenacity and hard work. For every time the Chargers were unlucky not to score, they were fortunate in the second half not to concede a goal to the Bears.
“Coming off a victory Monday against Cherry Creek and then coming in and playing a hard working, blue-collar team like Bear Creek is a recipe for disaster,” Chargers coach Brock Blume said.
Gray’s goal seemed like the first step in Chatfield’s dominance as the Chargers had been lurking several times with four to five bodies in the penalty area.
Callie Hancock began the sequence as she steamed down the right side, got behind her defender and ripped a curling shot that Bears goalkeeper Amy Huckaby could only palm away. The loose ball fell to Gray on the far side and the sophomore ripped it home.
Kelly McGrath, Jamie Kadera and Stephanie Rowe, who crashed a free kick off the crossbar in the 38th minute, all came close in the first half for the Chargers.
The Bears shifted the momentum two minutes into the second half when Hannah Kimball got loose on the far post on a free kick. Kimball didn’t connect cleanly with the ball, which allowed keeper Alyssa Gillmore to pounce.
“We were close tonight,” Bears coach Mike Ackerman said.
Bears defender Alex Sanderson nearly equalized in the 48th minute as she ripped a free kick that Gillmore had to push over the crossbar.
“We’ve been working a lot harder this year,” Sanderson said. “We haven’t been giving up like we used to.”
Chatfield 1 0 — 1
Bear Creek 0 0 — 0
Goal — Gray (unassisted), 15th minute.
Shots on goal — Chatfield 2-2 — 4, Bear Creek 2-2 — 4. Saves — Chatfield (Gillmore) 2-2 — 4, Bear Creek (Huckaby) 1-2 — 3. Offsides — Chatfield 1-2 — 3, Bear Creek 0-0 — 0. Corner kicks — Chatfield 1-5 — 6, Bear Creek 0-1 — 1. Fouls — Chatfield 6-8 — 14, Bear Creek 3-1 — 4. Yellow cards — None.
