Playoff soccer chaos: No. 11 Rocky Mountain pulls upset; No. 1 Fossil Ridge stunned in OT
The Rocky Mountain High School girls soccer team knows it can beat anyone in Colorado on a given day.
The Lobos beat Broomfield, one of the Class 5A title favorites, in the final week of the regular season, and if any validation for the ability of this Lobos team was needed, that did it.
They've continued that surge at the right time and are now storming into the quarterfinals after an overtime road upset Friday night.
No. 11 Rocky Mountain took down No. 6 Rampart 2-1 in overtime to move into the final eight of the 5A playoffs.
Rocky Mountain (12-3-2) led 1-0 at half before Rampart (14-3) tied it to force overtime. No problem for Rocky Mountain, though, as Jace Holley struck the back of the net for the game-winner.
The Lobos are used to these deep runs recently. Rocky Mountain made the quarterfinals in 2021 and 2018 and the semis in 2019.
@RMHSLOBOS Soccer advance to the @CHSAA 5A quarterfinals after an overtime goal by Jace Holley to earn the win over Rampart 2-1!! Such a great game, go Bo’s!! @PSD_ATHLETICS @ColoradoanSpts pic.twitter.com/J0iiAbuNOr
— RMHS Athletics (@LoBo_Athletics) May 13, 2023
The Rocky Mountain win was one of a series of upsets in the 5A bracket. Seed Nos. 1, 3, 6, 7 and 8 all lost in Friday's second round.
Now The Lobos will face No. 14 Fairview (12-4-1) in the quarterfinals at at 7:30 p.m. at Jeffco Trailblazer Stadium on Monday (May 15).
Fossil Ridge stunned in overtime
The elation of an upset was also felt at Fossil Ridge, but in a form of pain for the local team.
Top-seeded Fossil Ridge was left shocked by a 3-2 overtime loss against No. 17 Rock Canyon.
Fossil Ridge (15-2) dominated the ball in the first half, working with a big wind on their home court. It took a long time to find a breakthrough, but it came 30 minutes in when Abby Ballek headed in a corner kick from her sister Kiley.
The SaberCats couldn't build on the lead with the wind, though, and it proved important. Rock Canyon (9-5-2) surged once the teams flipped ends of the field and tied the game early in the second half.
Rock Canyon then went up 2-1 with less than 12 minutes to play, leaving Fossil Ridge on the ropes.
The SaberCats responded with a great cross from Liv Redmon and a dynamic header from Amy Smith with less than 4 minutes left in regulation.
That seemed to make Fossil Ridge the favorites again as the game headed to OT. The SaberCats were the top seed, had beat Rock Canyon 2-0 earlier this year, were a prime title favorite and even ranked No. 12 in the nation by MaxPreps.
Overtime is a fickle beast, however, and Fossil Ridge never even had a chance to find its footing when a broken play led to a wide open shot for Rock Canyon to steal the upset just 27 seconds into overtime on a goal from Grace Rossner, who is a club teammate of multiple Fossil Ridge players.
Girls lacrosse
No. 1 Colorado Academy 17, No. 8 Poudre School District 8 — The first 5A season for the Stars came to an end at the hand of the defending champions and undefeated Colorado Academy. PSD finishes the season with a strong 12-5 record.
Cami Schachet scored four goals, Laney Nesbitt had a goal and an assist and Ruby Money scored a goal.
Boys lacrosse
No. 1 Cheyenne Mountain 22, No. 16 Windsor 6 — After a first-round win over No. 17 Fruita Monument, Windsor ran into a buzzsaw in top-seeded Cheyenne Mountain.
No further stats were immediately available.
Follow sports reporter Kevin Lytle on Twitter and Instagram @Kevin_Lytle.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Playoff soccer chaos: No. 11 Rocky Mountain pulls upset; No. 1 Fossil Ridge stunned in OT
