Liberty controls possession in Class 5A soccer playoff shutout

Dillon Shook shuffled his feet, stretched his arms and tried not to fall asleep. While tending goal for Liberty on Saturday, Shook made a Maytag repairman look busy.

No. 3 seed Liberty dominated possession while beating No. 30 Denver South 4-0 at District 20 Stadium in the opening round of the 5A state tournament.

View a slideshow of photos from the match.

“This is the first game Dillon hasn’t had much played to him,” said senior Andrew Barson, who scored the first goal. “Today, he could’ve taken a nap.”

Liberty (11-3-2) led 2-0 at halftime and South (8-6-2) didn’t get a shot in the second half.

Liberty is at home Tuesday against either No. 14 Boulder or No. 19 Littleton.

Barson’s high, hooking goal to the left post from the far right side in the 11th minute gave Liberty the lead and senior Jordan Eshbach’s goal cleaned up Scott Kissling’s deflected header on Brandon Herre’s corner kick in the 17th minute for a 2-0 margin.

David Mowry added a goal with 5:12 remaining and Jake Martinez converted a beautiful crossing header from Aaron Douglas with 4:20 left to cap the scoring.

“Give Dillon credit for the shutout,” coach Mike Goyden said. “We talk to him about reacting and not leaving his feet. He made a great save on their first shot.”

Liberty’s solid defense allowed three shots by South while the Lancers bombarded the net with 15. Assistant Gary Spencer said the Lancers had more than 30 scoring opportunities, twice the normal amount.

“They were flat and so we were able to run right through them,” Barson said.

Goyden said South was to be feared because of its 2-1 victory against defending state champion Denver East.

“East was the No. 1 team in the state and No. 5 in the country on ESPN,” Goyden said. “But South and (No. 4) Abraham Lincoln made state from (the Denver Prep) league and East got left out.”

As usual, rugged seniors Kisling and Patrick Slogic keyed the defense. Shook has wrested goalie duties from early-season starter Taylor Shepard, a junior who is healthy again after being injured against Pine Creek.

Still, the game was a microcosm of Liberty’s season, with great defense and scoring opportunities gone awry.

“If we can finish, we can do very well (in postseason),” Goyden said. “But we’re just tight or something in the (18-yard box).”

Not to worry, said Barson, whose hair was cut in a modified Mohawk rather than the traditional red-dye job the Lancers usually employ for playoffs.

“We’re focused,” Barson said. “We’re going to go all the way.”