Evergreen boys soccer remains undefeated in 4A Jeffco League play

ARVADA — Evergreen boys soccer is focused and motivated this season.

“We haven’t made playoffs in a few years. We are taking that personally,” Evergreen senior captain Isaac Arnold said after the Cougars’ 4-1 victory over Bear Creek on Tuesday night at the North Area Athletic Complex. “We want to win league and make a showing in playoffs.”

The Cougars actually haven’t made the postseason since 2018. Evergreen (6-2, 4-0 in Class 4A Jeffco) is well on its way to ending its playoff drought.

Evergreen sits atop the 4A Jeffco standings at nearly the midway point in conference play. The win over Bear Creek (3-4, 1-2) kept the Cougars undefeated in league play and pushed their winning streak to four games.

“It was a good one. It means a lot,” Evergreen junior Will Rapp said of the Cougars’ fourth straight league victory. “To start off strong at 4-0 and on top of league. We just have to keep it going. Keep winning.”

Rapp scored a pair of goals in the first half. Rapp’s goals in the 15th and 18th minutes gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes.

The Cougars entered Tuesday’s conference game having outscored their opponents 17-0 in their first three 4A Jeffco League games. Evergreen already had wins against Littleton, Golden and Pomona in taking the early lead in the conference standings.

“We can defintely score a lot,” Rapp said of the Cougars averaging nearly four goals per game. “We just need to start off strong. Once we start connecting and playing we normally put it into the back of the net.”

Bear Creek ended Evergreen’s shutout streak early in the second half. Junior Brian Royal settled the ball just inside the goal box and fired a shot past Evergreen goalie Liam Kelly in the 44th minute to cut the Cougars’ lead to 2-1.

Evergreen got its 2-goal advantage back in the 52nd minute with a goal by sophomore Will Gluck. Minutes later, junior Callum Moffatt’s sliding shot toward the far corner found the back of the net to extend Evergreen’s lead to 4-1.

“We have a lot of good team chemistry so we get a lot of good goals,” Arnold said.

Evergreen has a bit of a break. The Cougars return to league play Monday, Sept. 30, against Standley Lake at Lakewood Memorial Field.

The six wins already this season has matched the win total from a year ago. Evergreen still has seven regular-season game remaining.

“Last year was our first year with (head coach Peter Jeans),” Arnold said. “This year we all know each other better and playing together as a team. Our summer trainings were much more structured. We have a much better environment this year.”

Jeans guided Evergreen’s girls soccer team to the 4A state championship last spring.