HIGHLANDS RANCH — Halftime is when coaches and players talk about the right adjustments. For Rock Canyon, it was an attitude adjustment.
“After the first half, we were playing bad, I went to the locker room and I was like, ‘This isn’t about the best team anymore, it’s about, on the field, who loves soccer more,’ ” junior midfielder Gustavo Hidalgo said. “We played with heart, and that’s how we won the game.”
Hidalgo had two assists and Alex Tarnoczi scored two goals Wednesday as the top-seeded Jaguars ran out 3-1 winners over Eagle Valley to advance to the Class 4A state semifinals.
The Jaguars (15-0-3) got an opening goal from the head of Nick Croley only to be pegged back almost immediately on a spectacular half-bicycle volley by the Devils’ Cesar Castillo. Rock Canyon slowly gained control in the second half with better possession, pressure on the flanks and the finishing of Tarnoczi.
In the semifinals for the first time in their short history, the Jaguars will face No. 4 Lewis Palmer at 4 p.m. Saturday at Englewood’s Pirates Stadium.
No. 8 Eagle Valley (14-3-1) fed off the possession and distribution of junior midfielder Marco Escobar and Castillo’s creativity. The Devils got into space with some angular runs and controlled large parts of the midfield through the first 40 minutes.
“We gave it our all, I guess,” Escobar said.
But the Jaguars would grab the first goal at Shea Stadium in the 38th minute. Hidalgo swept a cross in from the right side and Croley used his size and strength of fight off a defender and head the ball past Devils’ goalkeeper Trevor Grayson.
The Devils answered quickly and in highlight-reel fashion.
David Shea took a corner kick and sent the ball to the far post where Castillo elected to volley it with an acrobatic leap into the air. The ball exploded into the upper right corner to make it 1-1 at halftime.
“I think the guys were a little nervous. This is where we lost last year,” Jaguars coach Sean Henning said. “In the second half you started to see us do what we do best, and we started creating chances all over the place.”
Tarnoczi led the resurgence as he drew increasingly close to scoring. The Devils began to waver in the back and Tarnoczi hit the game-winner in the 54th minute with a nice turn, quick touches and shot from just outside the penalty area.
Escobar nearly equalized three minutes later but his shot sailed inches wide. The Jaguars sealed it when Hidalgo streaked down the left side and centered the ball for Tarnoczi for a tap-in.
Eagle Valley 1 0 – 1
Rock Canyon 1 2 – 3
Goals – RC: Croley (Hidalgo), 38th minute; EV: Castillo (Shea), 39th; RC: Tarnoczi (unassisted), 54th; Tarnoczi (Hidalgo), 66th. Shots on goal – Eagle Valley 3-3 – 6; Rock Canyon 4-5 – 9. Saves – Eagle Valley (Grayson) 3-3 – 6; Rock Canyon (Scanlan, 40 minutes; Lissek, 40) 2-3 – 5. Offside – Eagle Valley 1-1 – 2; Rock Canyon 1-1 – 2. Corner kicks – Eagle Valley 2-0 – 2; Rock Canyon 4-2 – 6. Fouls – Eagle Valley 6-12 – 18; Rock Canyon 4-6 – 10. Yellow cards – Gomez, EV, 46th minute; Tarnoczi, RC, 72nd.
