'Big game Ish' helps Niwot take down Frederick

The wins keep coming for the 6-1 Niwot boys soccer team which has now won five in a row and holds a one game lead in the 3A/4A Longs Peak League through April 4.

Led by head coach Stephen Dimit, Niwot is in the midst of playing six games in 10 days against league opponents. The Cougars' third game of the stretch came at home against Frederick on April 3. Timely goals paired with strong defense helped Niwot shut out the Warriors (4-1), 4-0.

Senior Aidan Martin opened the scoring at the 35:56 mark in the first half before Niwot entered a difficult offensive drought. Tired legs were a problem according to Dimit but that wasn't apparent for senior Ismael "Ish" Dominguez.

With Niwot still leading 1-0 and in desperate need of insurance late in the second half, junior Kaiden Waterman found a cutting Dominguez who evaded a defender and proceeded to find the top left corner of the net. The goal was Dominguez's fourth of the season to put Niwot up 2-0 with just under 10 minutes remaining.

"He's just got this thing where he shows up at the biggest moments right when we need him the most," Dimit said. "I call him 'big game Ish' because he doesn't ever hold the lead in goals for us, but if you're going to count what the goals mean to the team, Ish is the one knocking all those in."

About five minutes later, freshman Bo Gardner knocked in his first career goal and senior Ashton Campie capped off the run soon after with his sixth goal of the year. It was Dominguez's score, however, that established the extra oomph.

"Finishing I know is something we're really good at, but I think it's just a matter of want," Dominguez said. "That's something we were lacking in the first half and half of the second half. I think that goal just gave us that extra push to want it a little bit more."

Defensively, Dimit said it was at least the fourth backline combination he has constructed this season. Senior Keegan Stobbe, a Regis University soccer commit, shifted to defense and played well despite limited experience in the backline. At the goalkeeper spot, sophomore Javier Amaya recorded two saves in his second shutout of the season.

"This game was a must win if we want to keep our position on the league table," Dominguez said. "We just came out knowing what we had to do and we got it done."

Following the win, Niwot has just three more games before an expected run in the 4A state playoffs. The Cougars will vist 0-4 Roosevelt on April 5, host Mountain View on April 6, and then conclude their regular season at Severance on April 8.