Boys soccer: Top-ranked Centaurus beats aggressive keeper Neely, Jefferson Academy
Sep. 7—LAFAYETTE — Jefferson Academy soccer keeper Josh Neely and Holy Family football's Connor Neely have no relation, the former confirmed.
That comes as a bit of a surprise, because on Thursday night at Spangenberg Field it almost looked as if Josh was impersonating the hard-hitting safety in a 3-0 loss to Centaurus.
"I go by a rule to not get caught in no man's land, and I just find it's easier to be overly aggressive than overly passive," JA's second-year starting keeper said. "So that's why I'm getting hit. Or you can say I'm hitting them ... Just kidding."
The collisions you'd expect on the gridiron found their way to the pitch. In part, due to the aggressive-minded netminder, and certainly the result of the Warriors' constant attack.
In fact, the setup to Centaurus' first goal saw Brandon Fellows-Mason and Neely collide going for the ball in the 30th minute.
Fellows-Mason's hard try from the left was punched up into the air by Neely and the two immediately leapt up and into each other while trying to secure the rebound. It resulted with Fellows-Mason on the ground and Neely off-balance. The deflection from it went to Iain Dunham, who was just behind, for the winner.
"Fair challenge. We were both going for the ball," said Fellows-Mason, who recorded his team-leading 15th point on it.
Tyler Jones came off the bench and scored his team-best sixth goal of the season in the 67th to all but seal things. On a lead pass, the senior beat out a charging Neely atop the box, touched to the side of him, and hit a wide-open net.
Centaurus coach David Wood called last year's JV player their "sleeper forward" early in the season.
"He just comes in and scores," Wood grinned. "Can't ask for more than that."
Troy Welty added his first of the year in the 79th.
The Warriors (5-0) remain undefeated with something of a new-look roster this fall.
Despite losing seven senior starters from last year's Northern Colorado Athletics Conference champion, they finished the night as the No. 1 4A team on MaxPreps and the top-ranked squad on the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index, which calculates the postseason field.
They, however, are trying not to pay much mind to it.
"We don't get extra goals for being first in the state," Fellows-Mason said. "We have to play our hardest every single game, every single minute."
Jefferson Academy (0-2-3) remains winless. The usual-3A power looks a bit different this fall with youth and inexperience across the field, and a new coach in Ryan Proctor, who took over for the program's then-only coach, Matt Cassell.
"If we play this team two weeks ago, we probably lose by more," Neely said. "Everyone has been at practice, everyone is trying, and everyone is buying into this winning mentality. We're starting to get there."
JA is at The Academy Monday. Centaurus hosts Steamboat Springs Saturday.
