The crosstown boys’ soccer programs at Broomfield and Legacy came into the week with the longest winning streaks in Class 5A, touting runs of seven and six. Then Monday, the Lightning then lost to defending champ Denver East.
And while they don’t play for another week, their respective games against 2022 runner-up Fairview over the next seven days could go a long way in deciding the Front Range League-South champ while shaping the top of the upcoming postseason.
They face each other Oct. 12 ahead of the FRL crossover tournament.
Let’s dive into a few crucial games in each classification to follow this week.
Class 5A
No. 4 Broomfield at No. 18 Fairview; 7 p.m. Tuesday: Broomfield senior Marcus Von has points in seven of nine games this season and has scored in his last two. That gives him 10 goals and three assists, leading a team that has won seven in a row since starting the year with a pair of draws.
Broomfield (7-0-2, 3-0 FRL-South) is ranked fourth in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index, which goes a long way in making up the playoff seeding, while Fairview (5-1-4, 3-0-1) is just 18th.
The Knights, however, proved last year they can go deep despite a double-digit seed in the postseason. They lost in the finals to Denver East as a 12th seed.
Fairview is at Legacy (7-1-1, 3-0) Oct. 10.
No. 8 Fossil Ridge at No. 14 Rocky Mountain, 6 p.m. Tuesday: Antonio Katopodis has three goals in his last two games for the Sabercats (6-1-2, 3-0 FRL-North), who look primed to make more noise in league and postseason play. They beat Erie and Prairie View last week.
The Lobos (5-2-2, 2-0-1), meanwhile, tied Erie to begin league play last month and beat Loveland and Fort Collins a combined 8-1 last week. Francois Kapinga and Carson Holly each lead the team with four goals and two assists.
Class 4A
No. 12 Regis Groff at No. 2 Northfield; 6:30 p.m. Thursday: Neither team has lost this season.
Two-time defending champ Northfield (10-0, 5-0 4A/3A Denver League) has won 15 straight dating back to a road loss to 5A champ Denver East last October. Quinn Tettero has 13 goals and 10 assists in 10 games this year.
Regis Groff (8-0-2, 4-0-2) has outscored teams 35-4 this fall. Freshman Berk Ozekin has 10 goals and junior keeper Ever Zubia has six shutouts.
No. 10 Windsor at No. 3 Silver Creek; 6 p.m. Wednesday: Senior Kael Pacaro has seven goals and eight assists for the Raptors (7-2-1, 2-0 5A/4A Northern Colorado Athletics Conference), who tied 5A runner-up Fairview last week. Silver Creek is tied with No. 1 Centaurus atop the league standings.
Windsor (7-3-1, 2-0-1) has lost to Silver Creek in the last two meetings of the series. Davin Khaffaji is tied with Steamboat Springs’ Will Haden with the most goals in 4A this season (15).
Class 3A
No. 1 Colorado Academy at No. 19 Prospect Ridge Academy; 4 p.m. Tuesday: Last year’s final teams, Colorado Academy (8-0-2, 3-0-1 3A/2A Metro) and Peak to Peak (8-0-2, 3-0-1), are tied atop their league standings and are 1-2 in the 3A rankings. Simeon Woldeyohannes leads the way for the Mustangs with 12 goals and nine assists this fall.
The Miners (5-2-2, 1-1-1) are led by Aryan Sudheer’s seven goals and three assists. A couple weeks ago, they lost to Peak to Peak 2-0.
No. 20 KIPP Denver Collegiate at No. 6 Arrupe Jesuit; 6:30 p.m. Wednesday: Both teams came into the week slightly behind Fort Lupton in the Frontier League.
Angel Villa Valenzuela has nine goals this year for the Generals (8-1-1, 5-0), who have won five straight. Joaquin Acosta has seven for the White Tigers (6-4-1, 4-1-1).
Class 2A
No. 4 Bishop Machebeuf at No. 12 SkyView Academy; 4 p.m. Tuesday: The Buffaloes (7-1, 4-0 2A Metro Hills East) have won six straight, led by the state’s leader in goals (28) and assists (15), Jorge Valdez. They are tied in the league standings with No. 11 Denver Christian.
The Hawks (8-2-1, 3-1) bounced back from a loss to the Thunder last week with a 6-2 win over Denver Academy. Freshman Moe Estacio had his third hat trick of the season in it, giving him 12 on the year.
No. 2 Vail Mountain at 3A No. 17 Coal Ridge; 3:30 p.m. Thursday: The defending champ Gore Rangers (9-3, 5-0 3A/2A Western Slope) can just about clinch the 3A/2A Western Slope League title with a win over the Titans (5-3-2, 2-0-2), who currently sit in second.
Rutley Heinemann has 14 goals and 11 assists for Vail Mountain this season. Jorge Kestler has three shutouts in net for Coal Ridge.
The Gore Rangers beat the Titans 3-1 in a non-league match last month. Prior to that, Coal Ridge had gone 3-1-1 in the last five games of the series.