Kuot’s late goal lifts No. 3 Rampart over No. 14 Rock Canyon and into 5A boys soccer quarters
COLORADO SPRINGS — Oboyo Kuot was bound and determined to get a goal in the second half at District 20 Stadium. Mainly because the idea of an extra 30 minutes was play was frightening.
Fog rolled through northern Colorado Springs and with it, temperatures plummeted. Kuot, like most players on both sides wanted to get off the field. His header in the 68th minute was all it took and it was No. 3 Rampart getting a 1-0 win over No. 14 Rock Canyon to advance to the Class 5A boys soccer quarterfinals.
“It was cold,” Kuot said. “I never get used to this cold weather and all that. I just had to keep pushing and keep working through it.”
The Rams (16-0-1 overall) had a few near chances in the first half. The ball was chipped over Rock Canyon keeper Ian Fleming’s head and Simagen Collins put it into the net, but the play was ruled offsides.
Domyniko Jordan had a chance shortly after as the ball was placed for a perfect header, but he directed his shot right at Fleming. Through 40 minutes of the play the game was scoreless despite Rampart controlling possession for much of the half.
“We’re trying to work around and be patient to try to find our openings and, and we kind of did that better than the first half than we did the second half,” Rampart coach Karl Anderson said.
The best chance for either team in the second half came in the 55th minute on a Rampart corner kick. The attempt flew right in front of the net but no one made a play on it. The defensive battle ensued for another minute before a turnover led to the Jags’ (10-4-3) best chance all game.
The breakaway led to a clear shot for Alec Mikolajczak but it was wide of the net. To make matters worse, Mikolajczak went down hard on the play.
Even with him coming off the field, it felt like Rock Canyon had momentum for the first time in the second half.
But they couldn’t hold that momentum. It was in the 68th minute that Alec Lenz placed a perfect pass in front of the net. David Peters headed a pass to Kuot who used his own head to get the ball by Fleming.
“The ball just came in and I saw it, I saw David hitting it to me and I knew I wasn’t going to miss it,” Kuot said. “I put my head on it and I just saw it go in the net.”
Now in desperation mode, the Jags tried to mount an offensive attack. With under 10 minutes left on the clock, Joseph Kirby worked his way into the open field and had a one-on-one chance against Rampart keeper David Glazener.
“He’s a right footer, so I figured he would try to slot it in with a right,” Glazener said. “So I gave him a little (shake) and then came over with my left foot.”
The ball was knocked away, along with Rock Canyon’s last hope of tying the game. The Rams now advance to the 5A quarterfinals where they’ll host Regis Jesuit on Saturday.
Here's the game winner for Rampart (@WeAreRampartAD) soccer over Rock Canyon today:
The double-header! Oboyo Kuot, right place, right time. Rams advance to the 5A State quarterfinals vs. Regis Jesuit. pic.twitter.com/DVuwEKUdnB
— Richie Cozzolino (@RichieCozz) November 7, 2019
