D’Evelyn boys soccer rallies to tie Standley Lake, wins 4A Jeffco title
ARVADA — A tie wasn’t the ultimate goal for D’Evelyn’s boys soccer team in its regular-season finale Tuesday night, but it would have to do.
“It’s all about winning, not tying games,” D’Evelyn coach Paul Moline said after a 1-1 tie against Class 4A Jeffco League rival Standley Lake at the North Area Athletic Complex.
Despite the tie, the Jaguars (10-4-1, 5-1-1 in league) wrapped up the conference title for the first time since an undefeated league record in 2014. Standley Lake (9-4-2, 4-1-2) needed a win to snatch the league crown, but couldn’t hold on to a 1-0 first-half lead Tuesday night.
“That was a ton of fun to be apart of,” Standley Lake coach Mike Day said. “It was a great battle and I enjoyed being apart of it. All the boys fought hard.”
The lone goal in the first half started off of a Standley Lake corner kick in the 29th minute. Sophomore Erik Macias fired a hard pass to his brother, senior Diego Macias. The older Macias redirected the pass toward the goal and past D’Evelyn goalie Dylan Wickersheim.
D’Evelyn answered in the second half with a goal from junior Bert Li in the 44th minute. Li was able to get his foot on a loose ball just outside of post of the Gators’ goal before Standley Lake goalie Kevin Ruzicka could secure it. Li’s goal tied things up 1-1.
“After Bert scored we kept pressing because we wanted to win,” Moline said. “We knew the tie would get us there (league title), but we still wanted to win. We didn’t sit in a bunker.”
Standley Lake will be without starting goalie Simon Van Den Abbeele for the postseason. According to Day, the junior has a broken bone in his foot that will take eight weeks to heal.
“Kevin (Ruzicka) did absolutely fantastic,” Day said. “We are counting on him for the rest of the playoffs.”
Both teams had their chances to break the tie, but neither could find the back of the net for the remainder of the second half and the two 10-minute overtime periods. The Gators played the final 18 minutes of overtime with a man-advantage after Li was issued a second yellow card and soft red card.
Li will have to sit out the first-round playoff game for D’Evelyn, but Moline is confident the Jaguars’ depth will fill the void.
D’Evelyn’s leading scorer, senior Wesley Tedstrom, admitted he was a little disappointed with the tie. However, playing in the tough 4A Jeffco will benefit the Jaguars during the postseason.
“I think this league is a good representation of what we’re going to see in the state tournament,” Tedstrom said.
Overtime wasn’t kind to Standley Lake this season. All three league blemishes came in games that went into extra time. The Gators tied Valor Christian 1-1 after 100 minutes and Green Mountain upset Standley Lake 3-2 in a wild overtime game Oct. 7.
D’Evelyn’s lone loss in its last nine games leading up to the showdown against Standley Lake on Tuesday night was a 2-1 overtime loss to Littleton.
“What better game to prepare you for the playoffs then this type of game in this atmosphere,” Day said. “Playing D’Evelyn for the (league) championship was perfect.”
D’Evelyn and Standley Lake now wait to see where they will be seeded for the 32-team 4A state tournament. The bracket will be posted on CHSAANow.com on Sunday. First-round games are scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 26.
The Jaguars and Gators have had recent postseason success.
“Somebody always makes a run in Jeffco. Look at Standley Lake last year. They make a great run to the semifinals last year,” Moline said. “I think people are overlooking Jeffco a little bit this year. I think some Jeffco teams are going to surprise some people.”
D’Evelyn advanced to the 4A state semifinals in 2014 before losing to eventual state champion Air Academy.
Standley Lake finished third in the competitive 4A Jeffco League in 2015. As the No. 11 seed, the Gators upset No. 6 Niwot and No. 3 Battle Mountain to advance to the state semifinals last season. Standley Lake’s postseason run ended with loss to The Classical Academy. Evergreen went on to defeat TCA in the state championship game.
