(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
BROOMFIELD — They knew it would be close. They knew it would be physical.
No. 1 Kent Denver boys soccer and No. 2 Jefferson Academy didn’t disappoint with a 1-1 tie in double-overtime.
“We came here, we wanted to end their streak of winning,” Jefferson Academy’s Jake Claeys said recounting the games from last year. “We knew it was going to be a really tough battle. It was going to be physical and people were going to get hurt. We’ll just hope to see them in the playoffs.”
The game was a rematch of the 2016 Class 3A title game. Kent Denver won in a shootout after the teams ended overtime tied at 2.
Kent Denver keeper Joey Waldbaum faced off with Payton Tennal for a pivotal penalty kick with the game tied at 1. Tennal shot left, and Waldbaum made a diving save.
“It’s his first year playing keeper,” Kent Denver coach Arty Smith said. “He’s an incredible athlete, he’s picking up things fast. But, I turned to my goalie coach and I said, ‘Have you guys worked on penalty kicks yet?’ and he said, ‘nope.’
“(Waldbaum) came up with the save, and we rallied behind that.”
In the second overtime, Kent Denver’s Layton Purchase ripped a shot with his left foot that richocheted off the Jefferson Academy goalie, Eric Strauss.
And again, Purchase ripped one. This time off the outstretched hands of Strauss and off the crossbar.
“Everybody’s heart on both teams (stood out),” Claeys said. “Everybody had all their intensity going out, and they just wanted to win and that showed.”
Davis Evans crashed on net as Josh Melvin gathered the ball on the edge and sent a low cross that found the foot of Evans. He put it in near post and gave Kent Denver a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute.
Claeys turned a shot on goal and tied the game at 1-1 for Jefferson Academy.
“I saw the ball and I saw an open spot in the goal,” Claeys said. “I took the shot. I knew I had to take it.”
Kent Denver’s back line played strong defense, clearing chances from Jefferson Academy again and again.
Two separate Jaguar opportunities with under five minutes in the first half were thwarted by Nick Payne.
“I’d like us to play a little bit quicker,” Smith said. “Against a team like this, if you take a third touch, you get blown up. I wish we were playing more one and two touch.”
AJ Arroyo weaved through the Kent Denver defense and tried a chance on goal, but the shot went wide right. And Payne stepped up again to block a Payton Tennal shot to preserve the 1-0 lead.
“They’re very stout. We’re a young team with the exception of that back line,” Smith said. “We’ve got two seniors that have been playing for a long time, along with one junior. They’re big and strong and fast, as well as smart. Tough to break down.
“They allow us to do a lot of things that we couldn’t normally do without that kind of size, speed and athleticism back there.”
Then, in the 45th minute, Jefferson Academy almost got a break. A cross almost bounced over the head of Waldbaum.
The would-be mistake gave the Jaguars momentum, and Claeys knotted the game at one in the 53rd minute.
In overtime, Tennal shot, but it was cleared by Mattias Alberola. The teams headed to a second overtime period, but neither defense would give in.
“Jefferson Academy is always well-organized, they’re always well-coached,” Smith said. “They had a good team coming back with a lot of experience, and I think it was exactly what we expected. It was a tough game, a hard fought game.
“With any luck, we’ll see these guys again.”