Key games to watch in Colorado high school boys soccer season's second half

Playoff positioning and RPI positioning are crucial from now until the end of the regular season in late October. Each classification has several key games on the schedule for the remainder of the year, but here are 10 that could have a major impact in how the state tournament brackets shape up.

Along with key games in each classification, it's also a good time to look a few players who are standing out as potential Players of the Year.
Class 5A
Boulder at Legacy (Broomfield), Sept. 30, 3:30 p.m.
An overtime loss to Castle View (Highlands Ranch) ended Boulder's shot at a perfect season, but the Panthers are sure to rebound ahead of the 5A state tournament. One big test they will have is against Legacy, which came out of the gate on fire this season.

Calvin Pielke has been Boulder's leader on the field, scoring seven goals this season. Fellow senior Eduardo Castillo doesn't have a goal to his name but does lead the team with three assists.

Legacy had kept opponents scoreless until Sept. 18 when it beat Broomfield 2-1. A win over the Eagles is always a confidence boost, and the Lightning want to ride that electricity through the remainder of the season. Cooper Stephens leads the team with 11 goals, while Gael Hernandez has eight.

Fort Collins at Poudre (Fort Collins), Oct. 2, 10 a.m.
This will be a fun rivalry clash as Poudre has stormed up the 5A rankings in recent weeks. It helps to have a player like Thane Latzig, who has scored 16 goals in just six games for an attacking Impalas offense. Gus Conant has been steady in net, allowing just six goals thus far.

A loss to Arapahoe (Centennial) didn't slow Fort Collins down for too long. The Lambkins rebounded with wins over Ralston Valley (Arvada) and Fairview (Boulder) and are looking to maintain that momentum.

Mullen (Denver) at Cherokee Trail (Aurora), Oct. 12, 6 p.m.
This will be an interesting matchup as Mullen, a top 4A team, could be going for a league title by taking down Cherokee Trail, which could still be undefeated at that time. The Cougars have been a very balanced team with four players scoring at least four goals at this point in the season. Brandan Wurst leads the team with seven goals.

Mullen has been relentless, outscoring its opponents 50-1. Andrew McGrath gave up the one goal but has otherwise been stellar in the net. Eli Kerschen leads the Mustangs in scoring with 11 goals.

Player of the year candidates
Diego Flores, Adams City (Commerce City): No one else can provide as much balance to his game as Flores does. He has scored 12 points this season, but he also finds his teammates in scoring position as he has nine assists to complement his own goal-scoring ability.

Abel Herrera, Far Northeast Warriors (Denver): Herrera has become the most dynamic offensive player in the classification. His 23 goals are the most in the state, and he's averaging a whopping 6.9 points per game.

Karl Sugnet, Lakewood: In eight games, Sugnet has given up just seven goals and is one of the big reasons that the Tigers have yet to lose a game so far this season.

Class 4A
Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) at Cheyenne Mountain (Colorado Springs), Sept. 25, 11 a.m.
Cheyenne Mountain is doing everything possible to ride a swing upward in momentum. After losing two of three, the Red-Tailed Hawks are seemingly gaining respect and will really size themselves up against the Eagles.

The Hawks don't necessarily rely on one team star to get their wins as Eric Sung and John Arguello share the team lead in goals with three each. Valor has been tripped up once his year as Brody Wenaas leads the team with five goals, and sophomore keeper Dennis Polzin hasn't given up more than one goal in any game this season.

Pueblo Centennial at Pueblo West, Sept. 28, 6:30 p.m.
This South Central League matchup will have huge implications when it comes to the playoff picture, as well as the league championship. They battled to a scoreless tie on Aug. 24, but any early season jitters will have been shaken off since then.

Pueblo West had an odd early stretch of the season, going 0-1-2 through the first three games. They have settled in, winning five in a row with Chris Campos leading the way with eight goals. Wilder Unwin hasn't given up a goal since a 3-2 win over Pueblo South on Aug. 31. Pueblo Centennial has seemingly gotten better in recent weeks, winning five straight games by a margin of 25-2.

Battle Mountain (Edwards) at The Classical Academy (Colorado Springs), Oct. 23, 5:30 p.m.
This will be the top regular-season finale across all classifications. Battle Mountain has a tendency of going into the 4A postseason highly ranked, only to stumble early. So, being battle-tested heading right into state could make a huge difference. Bryant Ramirez got off to a hot start this season for the Huskies, scoring six goals in just his first four games. He will have to maintain offensive pressure to keep TCA off-balance.

The Titans resemble the soccer powerhouse they were a few seasons back. Jackson Baker leads the team with six goals, and keeper Trenton Courtright has allowed just two goals in 560 minutes.

Player of the year candidates
Ismael Flores Perez, Mitchell (Colorado Springs): The star forward for the Marauders has buried 20 goals in five games. He scored six goals to give Mitchell a 7-6 win over Palmer (Colorado Springs) on Sept. 1.

Jovany Rico, Fort Morgan: In six games, Rico has been spectacular for the Mustangs, scoring 13 goals and dishing out three assists.

Class 3A
Jefferson Academy (Broomfield) at Faith Christian (Arvada), Sept. 28, 6 p.m.
The 8-0 loss to Legacy that Faith Christian suffered seems to have ignited the Eagles. They have now won four straight games and outscored their opponents 24-1 in that stretch. Most of the scoring has come off the foot of Jack Goodwin as he has 10 goals on the season. But the Eagles have also shown the ability to find others when needed, as Ayden Johnston has five goals and Chris Furts has four.

Jefferson Academy has been the top dog in 3A all season, building a 7-0 record and outscoring its opponents 42-4. The showdown against Faith Christian is one of two games the Jags have against top-10 teams before the end of the regular season.

Colorado Academy (Denver) at Arrupe Jesuit (Denver), Oct. 16, 2 p.m.
After claiming its fifth title in program history, Colorado Academy has played a very consistent first half of the 2021 season. The Mustangs battled Peak to Peak (Lafayette) to a tie to open the year, then suffered a loss to The Classical Academy. Beyond that, they have still looked like one of the top 3A teams in the state. Lee Gastis has buried four shots into the net, and Luke Donaldson-Reid has been steady in the net, giving up only four goals.

The Generals have also been very good on the pitch. The only blemish on their record is a 2-1 loss to Peak to Peak, but beyond that they have been an aggressive team. Of the 49 goals they scored heading into this week, freshman Jose Barrios accounts for 11 of them. In his first 375 minutes in the net, Alberto Ramirez allowed just two goals.

Player of the year candidates
Jose Barrios, Arrupe Jesuit: Barrios leads the classification in points (28) and is tied for the lead in goals (11). His play is a big reason the Generals are 6-1.

Jesse Reyes, DSST: College View (Denver): It's hard to lose games when goals aren't given up. Reyes has four shutouts as the Wolves try to stake a claim as one of the top 3A teams in the state.

Joshua Salehi, Liberty Common (Fort Collins): In just four games, Salehi has amassed 11 goals as the Eagles try and battle back from an 0-3 start.

Class 2A
Crested Butte at Ridgway, Oct. 7, 3 p.m.
Crested Butte has been nothing short of a juggernaut since the start of the season. Entering this week, it has racked up a 9-0 record, outscoring its opponents 53-2. Jacob Bernholtz has scored 16 of those goals, with Blue Gardiner scoring eight and Grayson White adding seven. There aren't many teams on the Titans schedule that pose a challenge, but Ridgway certainly sticks out as one of them.

The Demons got beat by the Titans on the road, but they're hoping for a different result when they play at home. The five goals that Crested Butte scored are the only five goals given up by Ridgway this season. Cory Thomsen and Justin Beserra have both scored four goals for the Demons.

Fountain Valley (Colorado Springs) at Thomas MacLaren School (Colorado Springs), Sept. 28, 4 p.m.
Thomas MacLaren got a taste of a state championship atmosphere last spring and badly want to return to the championship game. They've looked strong this year with just a loss to St. Mary's tripping them up. While not putting up overwhelming scoring numbers, they've put together good games on both ends of the field with Jeth Fogg giving up just two goals and Chris Ambuul scoring seven of the team's 15 total goals on the year.

Fountain Valley has also put together a solid season with just a loss a James Irwin being the only game to not go their way. Freshman Jordan Nunez has been stellar in his first varsity season as he leads the team with 10 goals. Midfielder Julian Swett has had no problem finding open shooters as he has 10 assists on the year.

Player of the year candidates
Jacob Bernholtz, Crested Butte: He leads the classification with 37 points. His 16 goals are also the top mark for all of 2A.

Luciano Camerena, The Vanguard School (Colorado Springs): In two fewer games played, Camerena has just two less points and one fewer goal than Bernholtz. He leads the classification in points per game at 4.9.

Joshua Sutton, Rocky Mountain Lutheran (Denver): The senior keeper is facing more shots than anyone in the classification right now and is doing everything possible to turn them away. He leads 2A with 133 saves.