AURORA | The seniors on the Regis Jesuit boys soccer team waited their entire careers to win a Continental League championship.
When they had the chance to do just that Tuesday with a win over Chaparral at Lou Kellogg Stadium, they took full advantage.
Senior Dean Maloney broke a 1-1 tie when he poked in a loose ball and junior Colton Barry provided an insurance score minutes later to help the Raiders to a 3-1 victory over the Wolverines that secured the program’s first league title in 12 years.
Regis Jesuit (11-3-1 overall) finished 8-1-1 in Continental League play, a mark Legend could match with a win Oct. 19 against ThunderRidge. The Raiders own the tiebreaker, however, thanks to a 3-2 win over the Titans on Oct. 5.
When the clock hit all zeroes at the end of the Chaparral game, Regis Jesuit players dumped a bucket of ice water on head coach Rick Wolf to celebrate the accomplishment.
Senior Grayson Lombardo, who scored all three goals in the Raiders’ key win over Legend, came up with another big goal when he put Regis Jesuit on the scoreboard first with a goal off a cross from senior Colin Giardino.
Chaparral (5-8-1, 3-5-1) tied the game up on a Jake Krey goal and it went to the second half that way.
Regis Jesuit broke the tie when senior Cole Blake put a free kick chance low and into the goal box, where Wolverines’ keeper Kade Eiker got his hands on the ball, but it bounced free as he hit the ground. Maloney got a foot on it while in a pile on the ground to give his team the lead.
A few minutes later, Barry took a pass from Giardino and worked his way to point blank range, where his right-footed shot bounced off Eiker’s leg and came right back to him. He made a sliding shot that hit the side of the goal post and came back to him yet again, where he popped up and poked it into the net inside the far post.
Regis Jesuit’s league championship earned it an automatic spot in the upcoming Class 5A state playoffs and it should finish in the top 16 in RPI, which would give the Raiders at least one home playoff game.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
REGIS JESUIT 3, CHAPARRAL 1
Score by halves:
Chaparral 1 0 — 1
Regis Jesuit 1 2 — 3
Chaparral goal: Jake Krey. Regis Jesuit goals: Colton Barry, Grayson Lombardo, Dean Maloney. Regis Jesuit assists: Colin Giardino 2, Cole Blake.