Bitter ending for Mesa Ridge goalie

In what was probably the last soccer game of Kayla Riehl’s high school career, the ending was not what she had in mind.

The Mesa Ridge graduate gave up three goals in the final 10 minutes of the Southern Colorado Soccer Celebration, a match featuring the best players in the area, allowing the Red team beat the Blue team 3-2 on a muggy Wednesday afternoon at Cheyenne Mountain High School.

Riehl started the second half and for the first 30 minutes, all seemed fine.

Then Liberty’s Alex Dohm scored from about 15 yards on the right wing in the 71st minute. Two minutes later, Pine Creek’s Jenna Howerton scored from nearly the same spot on a low liner to tie it at two. Finally, with a little more than 2 minutes left, Sand Creek’s Alexis Michaelkovich lobbed a 20-yarder from straight-away over Riehl’s leaping arms for the game-winner.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” Riehl said. “I didn’t plan on getting scored on three times in the last 10 minutes.”

Watching Riehl was two pairs of familiar eyes — her former high school coach Karl Anderson and Tom Cliff, Riehl’s new coach at Adams State.

“One of the key elements I think she needs to work on the most is being set when the ball is in the attacking third,” Anderson said. “It’s noticeable on those last couple of goals, especially those last two goals.”

Riehl said Cliff told her she also needs to work on her vertical jump.

Riehl said she will improve as she practices with a goalie coach during weekends. But this is one game she won’t soon erase from her memory.

“Any loss is a big loss to me,” Riehl said. “Losing is never something to forget.”

In the boys’ match, the Red team won 1-0 when Zach Egeler received a long pass down the middle and flicked the ball over the goalie in the 38th minute.