Fort Collins – It was small in the grand scheme of things, but Dillon Hancock’s save in the 10th minute on Green Mountain’s Cody Lutes was huge.
It was the biggest of the three saves the Rocky Mountain keeper made Tuesday against the Rams in a 3-0 victory in the first round of the Class 5A state playoffs at J. Ray French Field.
The 12-seeded Lobos (12-2-1) advanced to the Round of 16 and will play the winner of today’s match between Arvada West and Regis.
“Making big saves like that, it’s always a good feeling afterwards,” Hancock said. “It would have been nice if I wouldn’t have had to make it.”
Hancock was supported on the offensive end by two goals from 6-foot-6 striker Steven Noller. The senior notched his first goal in the third minute, finishing off a nice run down the left flank by midfielder Corey Cullen.
Cullen beat a host of Rams defenders, then flicked the ball to the near post, where Noller chipped it over freshman goalie Riley Zelus.
“We were trying to keep the pressure on them as much as possible,” Noller said. “We needed to just keep laying it on them ’til we got a goal.”
Rocky Mountain, which finished third in the Front Range League, nearly made it 2-0 just 30 seconds later. Cullen got ahead of the stunned Green Mountain defense, but his attempt sailed high.
It was Hancock’s time to shine after that. With Green Mountain finally settling into an offensive rhythm, Lutes was able to let fly a shot toward goal that Hancock was able to punch away.
“It gets the team fired up, and really lets us know what were doing wrong,” said Hancock, who posted his fifth shutout of the season. “We just need to step a little harder.”
Said Green Mountain coach John Brovsky: “We played very well until the third goal. We could have got a couple in the box, and we were very unlucky that we didn’t do that. But once we got in there, we got crushed.”
Rocky Mountain went up 2-0 in the 46th minute. Devin Roybal’s direct free kick was saved off the line by Zelus, but the rebound was quickly put back by Jarrett Ponsolle.
Noller put the game out of reach in the 69th minute after sophomore midfielder Ryan Kawoluk set him up.
“I try to use my size a lot to play the ball around and work it through the middle, but I’m just another player on the team,” Noller said. “This just gives us a ton of confidence going into the next game. We’ve got to keep it going.”
Green Mountain 0 0 – 0
Rocky Mountain 1 2 – 3
Goals – Noller (Cullen), 3rd minute; Ponsolle (unassisted), 46th; Noller (Kawoluk), 69th.
Shots on goal – Green Mtn. 2-1 – 3; Rocky Mtn. 1-9 – 10. Saves – Green Mtn. (Zelus) 0-7 – 7; Rocky Mtn. (Hancock) 2-1 – 3. Corner kicks – Green Mtn. 2-0 – 2; Rocky Mtn. 2-0 – 2. Offsides – Green Mtn. 1-1 – 2; Rocky Mtn. 1-0 – 1. Fouls – Green Mtn. 7-14 – 21; Rocky Mtn. 12-10 – 22. Yellow cards – Trowbridge, RM, 68th.
Jon E. Yunt can be reached at 303-820-5446 or jyunt@denpost.com.
