2 weeks Ago By Taylor Lyons
Axel Lorentzen anchored C. Milton Wright boys soccer’s high-powered offense all season. But an injury in practice ahead of Saturday’s Class 2A state semifinal kept him out of the Mustangs’ most important contest to date.
But all that did was open room for new stars to shine. It was a pair of underclassmen. Sophomore Lucas Barker and junior Charlie Kitz scored the Mustangs’ two goals in their 2-0 win over Hereford to push C.
Milton Wright to its sixth state title game appearance of the last decade. “We had to step up and we did it,” coach Eric Riedlbauer said. “Total team effort.
We were the underdog coming into here. Everybody stepped up.” C.
Milton Wright has yet to allow a goal through four postseason games. The Mustangs have given up just seven scores over their last 10 games dating back to September. That stellar back line dominated again Saturday.
It would be natural for an imposing unit like the Mustangs’ to exude confidence on the turf. But they instead choose to play as if they’re trailing by one score at all times. That forces the defense to remain tight and the offense to stay on the attack.
That mindset has now pushed them one win away from a championship. “We’re playing really strong and working as a team,” sophomore center back Owen Davis said. “Talking is probably the biggest part.
Telling everyone where to go helps us out a lot.” The forward line was where Riedlbauer may have worried most. Lorentzen leads C.
Milton Wright with 20 goals this season. Losing his production would cripple most teams. But the Mustangs have others waiting for opportunities.
Barker sniped a shot from near the left sideline past an outstretched Hereford goalkeeper for his team’s first score. In the second half, Kitz doubled his team’s lead that was never close to shrinking thanks to its suffocating group of defenders. “We have a lot of confidence in these guys,” Riedlbauer said.
“They’re pushing each other in practice. That’s where these big games come from. They’re used to going at each other.
They’re not just going through the motions.” The coach said he felt like his team wore the underdog label Saturday. Hereford lost only one regular season game, a 3-2 C.
Milton Wright in the regular season finale, and ends its season with just two defeats. Both are to these Mustangs, who are back in the state championship game for the first time since 2021. It’s Riedlbauer’s first time reaching the pinnacle with C.
Milton Wright in the coach’s third year at the helm. A win next week against Parkside at Loyola Maryland would be the Mustangs’ third title in the past seven years and first since 2018. And players hope it’s enough to reestablish C.
Milton Wright as a perennial power. “It’d be a big step forward,” Davis said. “I feel like we’re back.
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