This was the greatest tie of Clare Jones’ career.

The Cheyenne Mountain senior said as much after the Red-Tailed Hawks’ match with Palmer Ridge, and that’s not a rapid reaction. That’s a fair assessment, especially since Jones’ team was two seconds away from a loss.

Cheyenne Mountain trailed in the waning moments of its home match Thursday, but Jones tied the contest at 1-1 with two seconds left against 4A’s No. 4-ranked Bears to salvage a tie.

And the University of San Francisco signee was mesmerized by the result of the final 15 seconds of the night.

“Definitely the best (tie) I’ve been a part of,” Jones said. “That feeling of coming back and fighting for a tie is better than a loss.”

Palmer Ridge scored midway through the second half to build a 1-0 lead, which the Bears maintained virtually all game.

Cheyenne Mountain (7-3-2), ranked No. 5 in 4A, had the ball on a throw-in with 22 seconds left, and as Palmer Ridge (9-1-1) cleared the ball, a Red-Tailed Hawk touched it prior to it rolling out of bounds, which gave possession to the Bears.

“After that, they had possession on the throw-in and I thought it was over,” Jones said. “But I saw the ball and said, ‘I’m going for it,’ and that’s all I remember.”

The Bears threw the ball in play toward the Cheyenne Mountain backline. The Red-Tailed Hawks then booted the ball toward the Bears’ end of the pitch, and the ball found Jones, who said she’s craved a clutch moment like this.

“I said, ‘I’m going to go get that ball,’” Jones said. “I’ve trained for this moment my whole life. I’m proud of myself for staying calm and finishing it. Anyone could’ve just kicked it right over the goal or missed on frame. I’m proud that I was able to hit it on frame and tie up the game.”

Jones gathered the ball off the bounce and, as the Bears’ goalie approached the Red-Tailed Hawks forward, Jones slipped it past the keeper and into the back of the net with 2.2 seconds left on the board.

“I love Clare Jones, and she’s been the heart and soul of this team in many ways,” Cheyenne Mountain coach Kristopher Miller said. “She’s a talented and phenomenal player and brings all the passion and fire in the world. You love it when she sets the place on fire.”

Red-Tailed Hawks players swarmed Jones as they celebrated the goal to keep Cheyenne Mountain unbeaten in the Pikes Peak Athletic Conference. Cheyenne Mountain is 1-0-1 in PPAC action, while the Bears are now 0-1-1.

“I’m not jumping through the roof with that outcome, but it’s a nice consolation,” Miller said. “The thing that’s nice about playing in the PPAC is we’re seeing a lot of competition that – and all respect to them – we’re not afraid of, and that was the case tonight. It’s nice that we get to play in a competitive conference and see the highest levels of competition.

“Of course, I want Cheyenne Mountain to go win a state title, but it’s nice to see all the Colorado Springs teams competing so well.”