On Friday I headed back up to NAAC to cover the 5A soccer match between the visiting Columbine Rebels and the Standley Lake Gators.  The weather was a crap shoot.  Every 5 minutes clouds would roll in and out so I went from shooting in shade to sunlight and back to shade all through the game.

I went into this game with a goal.  I wanted to grab a good header shot.  Something with the ball on the head.  Right away I grabbed the shot above.  It did not come out as sharp as I wanted, but it was a start.

This was a pretty good game, with both teams matching up well with each other.  But I still wanted that header shot.

The game was pretty close for the most part.  Both teams had a good attack, but Standley Lake was controlling the ball a bit more than Columbine.

After the first 4o minutes of the game, the score was tied at 0-0.  This was setting up the potential for a good second half.

The shot above was disappointing. Right before I grabbed this shot, a player headed the ball right in front of me, would have filled the frame perfectly, but the side, roaming official got right in the way.  If CHSAA followed the standard FIFA soccer rules and used a sideline judge, he would not have been in my way.  Frustrating.

But, soon after that missed header, I grabbed the above shot.  I was pretty happy.  I could see this Columbine girl eyeing the ball the whole way, allowing me to frame up and focus the shot in time to grab it.  It helped that she kind of hung in the air for a moment.

And then I got another one from the same girl.  I am getting there.  Standley Lake was able to net three goals in the second half and held Columbine scoreless to take the win.

To view and purchase photos from this game, please visit MaxPreps.