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Colorado Academy wins 3A girls soccer championship

The Mustangs shut out defending champion Jefferson Academy to capture the state title Tuesday night.

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Through 20 games of the 2019 season, Colorado Academy walked away from the soccer field in defeat only once.

That loss was dealt by Class 3A defending champion Jefferson Academy back in early April. The Mustangs bounced back, rattling off 13 straight wins in route to the title game, where they would get a rematch.

This time, however, it was Colorado Academy that came out victorious, shutting out the Jaguars 3-0 at Dick's Sporting Good Park on Tuesday night to dethrone the champs.

"This team wanted it so bad," said senior Mari Annest, who scored the first two of the Mustangs' goals. "We always knew this is where we wanted to be again, and it was awesome. It's an incredible feeling."

Although it's Colorado Academy's first title since 2015, the Mustangs are no strangers to playing for championships.

This year's seniors watched the group of players go back-to-back, and then had a shot to three-peat as freshmen. Instead, they were defeated by Kent Denver in 2016 and have been fighting to get back ever since.

"To be a part of a group that can get us back here and to know (we've) made history for our school, this is a group that's unbelievable," said Annest, who will next play at Northwestern University.

After playing through a scoreless first half, Annest put the first goal of the game in the back of the net in the 48th minute. She quickly followed that up with another goal nine minutes later.

Senior captain Catie Groves put the nail in the coffin with a third goal midway through the second half. Junior goalkeeper Juliet Cramer got the shutout in net for the Mustangs.

The championship campaign with a 19-1 overall record gives Colorado Academy its fifth state title.

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