Battle Mountain boys soccer ties No. 7-ranked team in 5A
Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
The Battle Mountain boys soccer team made the most of its second shot at Denver East.
A month after their Aug. 22 game was put on pause part way through the first half because of lightning, the Huskies rallied for a 2-2 tie against the No. 7-ranked squad in 5A on Tuesday night. The game started right where the two teams left off (albeit at Vail Mountain School’s field): with 21:30 remaining in the first half and the Huskies down 1-0. One minute in, Denver East made it 2-0.
“They were putting us under more physical pressure than we’re used to,” Battle Mountain head coach Dave Cope remarked. “When you go down 2-0 against a good team, a couple different things could happen. You start to think, ‘this could go to five or six, quickly.’ We challenged the boys to stand up and not let that happen and stabilize it.”
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Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
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Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
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Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
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Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
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Carlos Ventura and the Battle Mountain boys soccer team defeated Summit 4-2 on Thursday to improve to 4-0 in Western Slope play.
Rex Keep/Courtesy photo
Cope encouraged his group to “start with a few simple things and build from there.”
“Trying to complete a couple passes,” he continued. Carlos Gardea would make a nice dish to Jakob Methvin, but his breakaway was stopped by an incredible save by Finnur Mercier. Methvin eventually found the back of the net twice in the second half, with Fernando Lucero assisting on each goal. Cope said rallying to tie felt more like a win in this case.
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“I think anytime you’re down and come back and tie, it feels more positive than if you’re ahead and let it slip,” he said. “We were facing a seemingly insurmountable deficit against a really good team.”
Methvin, who scored 24 goals in 20 games last year, already has 14 in six appearances this fall. His stat line is all the more impressive considering his team’s schedule, which has included visits to 5A’s No. 2-ranked team in Northfield as well as local rivals Eagle Valley and pre-season No. 2 Centaurus.
“It’s amazing what Jakob is doing,” Cope said. “To average over two goals a game against the teams we’re playing. He’s doing it in close games.”
2020 graduate Dani Barajas recorded 54 goals over his career. His UCCS player profile indicates that he is the top scorer in the history of Battle Mountain. Methvin has recorded 61-career goals in 50 games. Cope said he’d love to see the star senior become the third player in program history — after Barajas and Emily Cope — to reach 40 goals and 40 assists.
“He’s developing the ability to give the ball up, run without the ball and use himself as a decoy,” Cope said of Methvin, who has 33 assists as of this writing. “He’s also developing other aspects of his game, which is why I think the 40-40 mark would be significant.”
Battle Mountain (4-1-1) is the No. 7-ranked team in 4A in the CHSAA polls and Selection & Seeding Index. The Huskies travel to Summit on Thursday in a rematch against the Tigers, whom they defeated 7-0 on Aug. 29.
