After opening the season with three home games in a row, the Summit High School boys soccer team entered the month of September by playing two games on the road.

Summit was shutout by Eagle Valley High School on Sept 3, in Gypsum before losing to Basalt High School, 2-0, on Sept. 10 in Basalt. 

Wanting to even the team’s record out at 3-3, Summit returned to Climax Molybdenum Field to take on Vail Mountain School for the Tigers’ homecoming match. Not wanting to drop a fourth-consecutive game, Summit began the game by challenging the Vail Mountain Gore Rangers.

After nearly five minutes of back-and-forth possessions to begin the game between the two nonleague teams, junior Paulo Nieto produced an offensive opportunity for the Tigers by breaking down the field.

The opportunity threatened the Vail Mountain defense for the first time of the game, but did not materialize in a shot on net. Summit remained steadfast in its pursuit for an early goal though, keeping the ball in its offensive zone and sending shots in the direction of the net.

Vail Mountain defended the slew of shots and soon flipped the field, challenging Summit with its speed.

Despite appearing a step behind, the Summit defense led by senior Reece Bosgraaf kept the ball from finding the hands of junior goalie Johan Gomez.

Following a great defensive stand by Summit, senior Griffin Gamboa flew down the field and fired a shot at senior Hunter Iverson in goal for Vail Mountain School. The shot had a chance at finding the back of the net but was secured by Iverson.

With around 22 minutes remaining in the first half, Gomez made a great save for the Tigers, but misread the situation and fed the ball right back to a Gore Ranger forward a few feet away from the net.

The Vail Mountain forward promptly fired from close range, but the high-percentage shot was miraculously saved by Gomez. 

Feeling invigorated by Gomez’s save on the other side of the field, the Summit offense rocketed off several shots. One shot by junior Seth Montgomery almost found the far left side of the goal, but just drifted wide.

With eight minutes remaining in the first half, Summit had the opportunity to score on penalty kick after Nico Novotny was tripped up while sprinting towards the net. Novotny rocketed off a fiery shot which bounced off Iverson’s hands and head before being fully secured.

The half concluded with Vail Mountain School sending a shot within inches of the back of the net, but the shot bounced to the far left of the goal. The score remained tied at 0-0 going into halftime.

Wanting to set the tone in the second half, Summit immediately charged down the field, established possession and fired the ball off his foot. The arcing shot from the foot of Novotny forced Iverson to backpedal, but the ball was nabbed out of the air before finding twine. 

Summit continued to hunt for a goal over the next few minutes. Senior Juan Varon got a chance to score with a penalty kick, but the shot bounced off Iverson and sailed wide of the goal on the second attempt from Varon.

As the game ticked under 20 minutes, Summit finally got the golden opportunity it was looking for. With the ball pinned deep in the offensive zone, Varon received a pass which he struck forcibly towards the net. The shot had little chance of being stopped and successfully broke past Iverson for the goal.

Leading 1-0, Summit was forced to tighten up its defense as Vail Mountain lurked for an equalizer.

The Gore Rangers had two corner kicks that got close to scoring, but the Tigers’ defense kept the ball from finding Gomez and turned the ball up the field. 

With under three minutes remaining, Vail Mountain had its best shot at scoring a game-tying goal with a free kick. The Gore Rangers sent a powerful shot close to the net, but Summit cleared the ball away. 

Wanting to seal the game, Novotny charged down the field past the Vail Mountain defense and scored. Summit defeated Vail Mountain, 2-0. Summit advances to 3-3 on the season while Vail Mountain falls to 3-2-1.

“A win always feels good,” Novotny said. “We needed this one after three losses, but we are back in it. We have a few boys with sicknesses and stuff, so that is a challenge that we pushed through. At halftime we really regrouped and got it all together.”

Summit will play its next four games on the road, including a game against Roaring Fork High School in Carbondale on Saturday, Sept. 28, at 11 a.m. 

“We will definitely celebrate for sure and then we will lock in again,” Novotny said. “We have a bunch of games. Stay fit and healthy for those and have fun while we are doing it.”

The Tigers’ next home game will take place on Oct. 10, against Eagle Valley High School.