YOUR AD HERE »

Grand County’s girls U-18 soccer team goes undefeated, wins championship

Grand County’s girls club soccer team has just won its first-ever championship title.

The Inter Mountain Liberty U-18 girls soccer team finished off their season with a resounding 6-1 win over Platte Valley on Saturday, Nov. 1.

The victory clinched the Colorado Classic League Soccer title for the Grand County team.



“This is a first for any soccer team from up here, so it’s quite an achievement,” said Simon Levett, Inter Mountain Soccer Registrar.

The Grand County team, coached by Jeff Burrows and Kent Zastrow, earned a perfect 10-0-0 record during this fall’s season to finish in first place out of 16 teams and secure the championship title.



“The team was truly tenacious,” Levett said. “Although they achieved a 100-percent win record, most of the games only had a one-goal margin and on many occasions the winning goal was not recorded until the last five minutes of the game. They just kept battling away until they got the result.”

The strength of the team started with its defense. Emily Abbott, the goalkeeper, recorded a save percentage in excess of 80 percent. Central defense was anchored by Tracie Kroneberger and Shelley McLean. Playing as fullbacks were Brittany Gardner, Cindy Hobbs, Savannah Shipman and Makenzie Wilderman.

“On average the defense only conceded just over one goal a game and that resolute play kept the team in a lot of games, allowing them to win with late strikes,” Levett said.

In central midfield, the team featured Rylee Burrows, Janni Conrad, Jackie Coucke, Kaylee Findley, Makenna Morck and Hannah Levett, who led the team on assists with 10 for the season.

Playing at wing mid were Khyla Burrows, Ashley Chase, Lisa Hobbs and Kristin Van Horn.

“The midfield was the engine room of the team,” Levett said. “Together they created 80 percent of the team’s goals and scored over 35 goals.”

At forward, Ryndi Zastrow led the team on scoring with 16 goals for the season, assisted by Kylee Delphia, who contributed with both goals and assists.

“Most of these girls have been with the team for about six years,” Levett said. “Many of them will be graduating from high school this spring, so this being their last season on the team. It was a great way to finish.”

This season’s team worked hard, especially in pre-season. The girls began practicing together back in July and attending a camp at Adams State University.

“All of that hard work showed and was just reward for the many years of effort put in by coaches Jeff Burrows and Kent Zastrow,” Levett said.

With their season now finished, Grand County’s Inter Mountain Liberty U-18 girls soccer players would like to thank their uniform sponsors Will Steinberg and Mainstreet Realty.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

The Sky-Hi News strives to deliver powerful stories that spark emotion and focus on the place we live.

Over the past year, contributions from readers like you helped to fund some of our most important reporting, including coverage of the East Troublesome Fire.

If you value local journalism, consider making a contribution to our newsroom in support of the work we do.