HIGHLANDS RANCH — Mountain Vista picked a nice time for a season high in goals.
On another brilliant early fall afternoon, the Golden Eagles scored four times in the second half and routed Heritage 6-3 on Thursday to claim the school’s first Continental League crown. Now 13-0 overall, 10-0 in league, the Golden Eagles will finish the regular season Tuesday against Highlands Ranch. Heritage (10-3-1, 8-2), the league’s No. 2 postseason seed, will finish at Regis Jesuit.
In 12 previous games, Mountain Vista had scored more than two goals once. But the Golden Eagles, trailing by a goal at halftime, found the back of the net four more times, two by Luke Woodruff, who tallied three for the game.
“We started working hard and outworking the other team,” he said.
Woodruff got the game-winner on a wind-aided curler that glanced off the left post.
“It was a lucky goal, but a goal’s a goal,” he added.
An ecstatic Golden Eagles coach Theresa Echtermeyer, whose team twice rallied from deficits against the Eagles and had only trailed twice previously in 2010, said: “(The Eagles) actually outworked us in the first half. But this was a good test and how it’s going to be in the playoffs.”
Midway through the first half, Heritage scored on consecutive shots by Tanner Swenson and Jeff Whitney. The Golden Eagles climbed back on scores by Jordan Anner and Woodruff’s first goal only to have Swenson make it 3-2 — he somehow got through three defenders — through the first 40 minutes.
Then Mountain Vista, also stronger on defense down the stretch, controlled more of the play and put it away as five of its six goals were unassisted, including a long free kick that tied it at 3 by Hunter McElyea that sailed over everyone, including Eagles goalie Timothy Erwin.
“I would say they didn’t outwork us, but they definitely made plays with their playmakers,” said Heritage coach Adam Buseck, a former University of Denver assistant who replaced longtime Eagles boss Tony Hurt.
Heritage 3 0 — 3
Mountain Vista 2 4 — 6
Goals — 1. Swenson, Her.; 2. Whitney, Her. (Chamberlain); 3. Anner, MV; 4. Woodruff, MV; 5. Swenson, Her. (Jennings); 6. McElyea, MV; 7. Woodruff, MV; 8. Woodruff, MV; 9. Pacheco, MV (Dia).
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
