Benn Farrell
AURORA - Once the Arapahoe boys lacrosse team found its legs, Monarch never stood a chance.
Arapahoe, the No. 1 seed in the state tournament, had the Coyotes so rattled after the initial five minutes of their quarterfinal game May 12 at Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, coming up with a ground ball, completing a pass and executing the transition was nearly impossible for Monarch.
As a result, the Warriors (17-0) defeated the No. 8 Coyotes (13-4) by a 13-1 final and advanced to the semifinals against Columbine (15-3), the No. 4 seed.
Against Monarch, Arapahoe found its rhythm after five minutes of Monarch putting up a fight and blistered their way to nine unanswered points before halftime.
Arapahoe coach Guy Cerasoli said the game was an example of the kind of teamwork of which the Warriors are capable.
“Our offense was firing on all cylinders. The defense was solid. Sound fundamentals and good communication,” Cerasoli said.
Junior Tyler Widlund, who scored four goals and assisted two others, said the team had a bad start but once they were able to work as a team, the offense started to find their shots.
Junior Michael Babb came up with two goals and two assists, while Bryce Parietti, a senior attacker, finished with three in the net and an assist as well.
Arapahoe had similar struggles against Heritage in the first round of the playoffs bracket.
However, it was a lesson learned for the quarterfinals.
“We made it our goal to start fast and start shooting,” Widlund said. “As soon as we have our foot on (an opponent’s) throat, we need to keep it there.”
Between the pipes, junior goaltender Ryan Smith came up with seven saves over three quarters before getting replaced in the fourth quarter by his backups.
Kevin Marr, Tyler Lampard, Don-shae Ragland and Zach Runberg each scored a goal for Arapahoe. Ragland had an assist as well.
Arapahoe 13, Monarch 1
Monarch 0 0 0 1 - 1
Arapahoe 4 5 3 1 - 13
Scoring: Mon, Kyle Donner 1-0, Connor Eakes 0-1; Arap, Tyler Widlund 4-2, Michael Babb 2-2, Kevin Marr 1-0, Tyler Lampard 1-0, Ben Eigner 0-1, Don-shae Ragland 1-1, Alex Geiser 0-1, Bryce Parietti 3-1, Zach Runberg 1-0.
Goaltending: Mon, Connor Johnson 9-4 (24), Brandon Malaty 4-4 (24); Arap, Ryan Smith 0-7 (36), Brandon Minshall 1-2, Cooper Glass 0-2.
