No. 22 Northridge stuns Golden in 4A playoff opener

ARVADA — Northridge took a first-half lead and hung on for an upset in the opening round of the Class 4A boys soccer state tournament Thursday night at the North Area Athletic Complex.

“I knew we had to come out hot and heavy,” Northridge coach Mario Colin said of the Grizzlies’ game plan after a 3-2 road victory against Golden. “We wanted to capitalize on opportunities to try to win the game.”

No. 22-seeded Northridge started building up offensive pressure in the final 10 minutes of the first half and it eventually paid dividends against No. 11 Golden.

A free kick by the Grizzlies bounced its way to junior Eliy Diaz at the front of the net. Diaz put in a header past Golden senior goalie Jacob Laubhan. The goal gave Northridge (11-3-2 record) a 1-0 lead in the 32nd minute.

“We wanted to pressure them,” Northridge senior Juan Beltran said of the strategy to not allow the Demons (11-5) room to operate.

Laubhan made a diving save minutes on a shot by Northridge senior Justus Alcala to prevent another score, but the Grizzlies was able to extend the lead to 2-0 at halftime when senior Julian Gordo riffled in a rebound in the 38th minute.

“In the locker room at halftime we talked about Golden coming out strong,” Colin said. “(Golden) keeps fighting to the end.”

The Demons did come out strong in the second half with a penalty kick goal by senior Andres Garfias in the 50th minute to cut Northridge’s lead to 2-1.

However, five minutes later the Grizzlies pushed the lead back to a 2-goal advantage with a goal off a direct free kick from Beltran.

“I saw the gap and told myself I just have to place it,” Beltran said of the eventual game-winning goal. “Trust myself, trust my shot and it will go in.”

Golden responded again with a deflection off junior Flynn Halsor that got past Northridge goalie Owen Henderson in the 59th minute. It would be the final goal of the night with both defensives holding their ground in the final 20 minutes.

Northridge players bursted into celebration mode when the final horn sounded to give the Grizzlies the first-round upset victory.

“This one hurts,” Golden coach Larry Harding said.

Golden has been the most consistent 4A Jeffco program over the last handful of years. The Demons advanced to the state quarterfinals in 2020 and 2021. In 2019 Golden was one step away from the state title game when it lost to eventual champion Skyview in the semifinals.

“We were expecting to go further than this,” an emotional Harding said after the season-ending loss. “I take full responsibility for this. The boys shouldn’t go out in the first round on our home field. This hurts.”

Northridge hits the road again to face No. 6 Silver Creek in the second round on Wednesday, Nov. 2 next week. The Raptors defeated Fort Morgan 6-0 in another first-round game on Wednesday night.

“We are going to go back to the drawing board and watch film on them,” Colin said of preparing for Silver Creek. “We’ll try to play our game and capitalize on opportunities.”