Update:

The boys’ varsity soccer team had its first playoff game against Kent Denver on Friday, Oct 30. Although the players went into the game with a positive attitude, they ended the season with a 2-0 loss to Kent Denver.  

“We were expecting a hard fought game, our hardest yet,” said team captain Nikko Whese.  “We came out ready to play and to my surprise we held our ground. The game was definitely more defense oriented, but we also had some really close offense counter-attacks.”

Aspen held the game at 0-0 until the last 11 minutes when Kent scored their first goal. Aspen’s goalie, Jack Bassi came out of the goal to knock the ball away from his post when Kent Denver player Rory Buck got possession and scored their first point.   Kent Denver player Max Gottesfeld scored the second goal on Aspen in the last 10 minutes.

The final score may have been disappointing, but the team players are pleased with how hard they played.

“We played the best game we had ever played this season,” said Wehse.

“We finally somehow managed to get it together in our last game, and we played really well,” said team Captain Erik Gagen. “I just wish that we could have played like that the whole season.”

From Oct. 30:

It’s the last game of the season, and the AHS boys varsity soccer team thinks they have the game in the bag. Suddenly, however, a Palisade player runs up the field and scores a goal. For their last regular season game, this was a disappointing loss for the players.

The soccer team finished up a challenging season, but was still able to secure a playoff berth with a record of (6-8-1). This will mark the second year in a row that the team has made the state playoffs. They will be one of 32 teams to play in the state championships, and the boys are hoping that they can put what has been a rough season behind them, and rally into the playoffs.

Their last regular season game ended in a 0-1 loss to Palisade.  

“The team was over confident going into the game and we got caught slacking off. We should have played a lot harder than we did,” said team co-captain Nikko Wehse.

The final loss was both disappointing and disheartening for the team; however, today the team has a shot at redemption, and is psyching up for the playoffs against a challenging first opponent.

Aspen will be squaring off against Kent Denver School, the top team in the state, right out of the gate. If Aspen can manage a victory on Friday, then they will play again on Saturday. Aspen will need a victory in both games to keep championship hopes alive, and keep playing into the following weekend.

“We just managed to make into the playoffs,” said Whese. “Our offense at the beginning of the season couldn’t quite put it together, so we lacked in goal scoring, but our defense has been pretty strong for the whole season.”

Wehse, upon hearing that the team had made the playoffs, wasn’t initially overly excited about their playoff chances, but after an inspiring practice on Monday, October 26,  he and the entire team became rejuvenated and prepared to come out with their best foot forward.

“All of the boys seemed really excited and seemed like they were ready to play to the best of their abilities,” said Wehse.

Aspen will face the state’s top seed on Kent’s home turf in Denver. With a record (14-0-1), Kent Denver will certainly be no pushover, but the Skiers have found some new life, and may just be poised for the upset.

“ I think we could win,”  said team co-captain Erik Gagen. “ It’ll be close for sure, but I think we can pull through.”