Battle scars: Boulder soccer defeats Fairview for first time since 2013
Apr. 9—Eighty-eight seconds can feel like the blink of an eye in an 80-minute game like high school soccer, but that's all Boulder's girls needed to stun Fairview 2-1 on Tuesday night for their first win in the series in more than a decade.
Junior keeper Maisie Creamer held down the fort for the Panthers on Fairview's pitch in the 35 minutes that remained after her team took the lead, even as Fairview's attack battered her left and right. She certainly displayed the proof of her heroics following the game.
"Usually, I wear leggings when I play, and I didn't for this game," Creamer said. "I'm totally regretting it because I have cuts all over my legs. I just went into this game (thinking) whatever I can do to save this ball, keep this ball out of the net is what I'm going to do tonight and just throw myself on the line for whatever I can do."
Junior midfielders Mia DeJohn and Piper Reivich took care of the rest, netting the consecutive scores in the opening minutes of the second half to negate Fairview's lone goal throughout the opening 40 minutes of play. It marked the first win for Boulder over Fairview since 2013.
After the first goal scored by their team, a Boulder player yelled "Thank you God" in elation that could be heard from the sidelines. Reivich followed through on the rest of that prayer a minute and 28 seconds later, as she barreled down the field to draw Fairview keeper Adeline Costello out of the net. The goal that followed was a work of art.
"I think the whole team played a massive role, especially Mia and Piper for those amazing goals, but I think that just beating them for the first time in (11) years and finally making this rivalry more even is such a good feeling for the whole team," Creamer said.
Fairview, which graduated key figures including star scorer Claire Silverman, has spent the first few weeks of the season realigning its identity toward a much younger corps. The Knights fell to 2-2-1 with the loss, whereas the Panthers improved to 3-3 with their first Front Range League victory.
Junior forward Lucy Ochs, who netted the lone score for the Knights, believes Tuesday's showing bodes well for their future as they continue to grow on the pitch.
"I think that there were not very high expectations going in with us just because of how many seniors we lost last year," Ochs said. "But I think that we are just such a family and I think that we play for each other. We don't play for ourselves, and I think that that's really what drives this team."
Boulder will return home on Saturday afternoon to take on Castle View, whereas Fairview will head next to Northglenn on Thursday.
