AURORA — Fittingly, Meghan Thomas’ night Tuesday ended with a save.
It was her 13th of the game and just another reminder that the Duke-bound senior goalkeeper was the wall of difference in the Raiders’ 1-0 Class 5A Continental League victory over .
High, low, fully extended, straight-on and from distance, Thomas caught, tipped and pushed over everything the Golden Eagles could muster, not to mention staying cool after Josi Hamill scored in the 62nd minute to ramp up the pressure on the visitors.
“Any save is a good save,” Thomas said. “I’m happy with any of them.”
Both teams were just happy to be playing again, as spring break and snow meant Regis Jesuit (2-2, 1-2 league) was seeing its first action since March 10, while the Golden Eagles (2-3, 2-1), ranked No. 10 in the preseason, hadn’t played since March 18.
But the rust was negligible. The Golden Eagles dominated statistically, while the Raiders absorbed and countered through Gonzaga-bound playmaker Cassie Geerdts, who registered two of Regis Jesuit’s three shots on goal.
The 80 minutes turned out to a nice evolution for the Raiders, who have lost three starters to injuries this season and were making a few adjustments on the fly.
“Each game we’ve been having to reshuffle,” Raiders coach Will Cropper said. “I think we found something that works. . . . It’s a big win for us.”
And it was a frustrating loss for the Golden Eagles. Behind midfielder Jenna Owens, Hayley Hughes and Taylor Smith, the Golden Eagles constantly seemed able to get in dangerous spots, but their desire didn’t seem to kick in until the final 15 minutes.
“I really think the biggest difference for us was I felt we just lacked urgency in the first half,” Golden Eagles coach Theresa Echtermeyer said. “Too many through-balls, not enough balls to feet.”
Hamill’s goal came off a free kick by Brooke Moody, who played the ball outside the penalty area. A shot and poor clearance up the left channel met an in-stride Hamill, who belted it inside the near post.
Then it all came back to Thomas, who made arguably her best save three minutes later. Hughes got the ball nodded over to her on the right side and she ripped a shot that Thomas stretched out and deflected for a corner kick.
“She’s the real deal,” Echtermeyer said.
“Every shot, you can’t say enough about her,” Cropper said.
Thomas stopped Hughes in close during the 22nd minute and reached all the way back to stop Gabby Miranda’s blast in the 37th.
Mountain Vista 0 0 — 0
Regis Jesuit 0 1 — 1
