Lakewood – Conifer’s Bobby Potrykus runs across the country, so a mere soccer field is hardly a challenge for his lung power.
Late in the Class 4A Jefferson County League encounter between the Lobos and Golden on Tuesday night, when other legs wobbled and lungs burned, Potrykus continued to charge up and down Lakewood Memorial Field in a full sprint.
And it was Potrykus, a top-15 finisher at the 4A state cross country meet last spring, who scored two late goals to secure Conifer’s 4-1 win over the Demons and further tighten the pursuit of the Jeffco title.
“I’m a runner, too,” Potrykus said. “I run cross country, so I try to run the other team the whole time and get them tired. This was our biggest game of the year, and we were so psyched for it. We knew we had to win this game to win league.”
Conifer (9-2-1 overall, 5-0-1 league), No. 10 in The Denver Post/9News 4A poll, is the only unbeaten team in Jeffco with three games left in the regular season. The Lobos are looking for their first league title since 2001, but Alameda, Evergreen and Summit are still in the chase, along with the Demons.
No. 8 Golden (7-2-2, 5-1), the two-time defending league champion, was handed its first loss since dropping a 1-0 decision to Wheat Ridge in the season opener.
Conifer controlled the first half, looking more aggressive and active than Golden. That pace led to Ian Murray’s penalty kick, which he delivered to the bottom left corner of the goal just outside the reach of Golden’s first-half goalkeeper Jordan Arellanes.
In the second half, Conifer’s Kevin Flavin took an assist from Walker Plant and caught Golden’s second-half keeper, Patrick Tinucci, out of position to give the Lobos a 2-0 lead in the 60th minute.
Flavin’s goal was the first of four in a nine-minute period.
Ray Klucik put Golden on the board with a header off a throw-in that beat Conifer keeper Lowell Rompf. But Potrykus and his Conifer teammates rediscovered their first- half intensity to put the game away.
“More than anything, they were beating us to the ball,” Golden coach Chad Reid said. “They came out with more intensity than us, but we felt like we were more aggressive in the first 10-15 minutes of the second half.”
Golden 0 1 – 1
Conifer 1 3 – 4
Goals – C: Murray (penalty kick), 26th minute; Flavin, (Plant), 60th; G: Klucik (unassisted), 64th; C: Potrykus (Plant), 65th; Potrykus (unassisted), 69th.
Shots on goal – Golden 0-2 – 2; Conifer 2-6 – 8. Saves – Golden (Arellanes) 1-0 – 1, (Tinucci) 0-3 – 3; Conifer (Rompf) 0-1 – 1. Offsides – Golden 2-0 – 2; Conifer 0-0 – 0. Corner kicks – Golden 1-4 – 5; Conifer 5-4 – 9. Fouls – Golden 8-6 – 14; Conifer 5-10 – 15. Yellow cards – Rabadan, G, seventh minute; Stokes, G, 47th; Tadra, C, 47th; Plant, C, 56th.
