AURORA — A ticket to the state title game? Yeah, it’s safe to say the Broomfield Eagles boys soccer team has acclimated quickly since moving up to the state’s top classification this year.
The perennial 4A powerhouse advanced to the 5A final after Tyler Hulst booted a 25-yarder into the top right corner of the net with 2:22 remaining in overtime to give Broomfield a 2-1 win over Fairview on Wednesday at Legacy Stadium.
“I didn’t get to see it, I fell over,” Hulst said amid adulations from his teammates. “I heard it was a good shot though.”
Fairview (13-6) had carried much of the game’s momentum after Casey Munsch scored on a cross from Raul Magno with 9:03 remaining in regulation to tie the game at 1-1.
“I thought we were gaining momentum to that point and I was very hopeful that one was going to get us over the hump,” Fairview coach Stan Jozwiak said.
But Broomfield’s defense held fast, as it has done throughout the playoffs. The Eagles have allowed just one goal in the postseason, including shutting out their opponents through their first 310 minutes of play.
“I think our guys responded really well to that,” Broomfield coach James Davidson said. “I thought Fairview might try and win the game in the last nine minutes, but our guys were able to get it into overtime. We were able to regroup and find our belief again.”
Broomfield will face the winner of the Boulder-Smoky Hill game at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
The Eagles have won four boys state soccer titles in six final appearances — all in 4A — with the last victory coming in 2007. Davidson said his team has always played one of the state’s toughest schedules, so they were well prepared for the move up to 5A.
“The adjustments was certainly there in the depth of the league. But we were able to survive the Front Range League. It prepared us.
Broomfield got on the board first with Tyler Duggan scoring on a header from a corner kick by Porter Milner in the 32nd minute of the first half.
Joe Nguyen: jnguyen@denverpost.com or
