AURORA | The Cherokee Trail boys soccer team came through its toughest test and remained unbeaten, it just didn’t put one in the win column.
The Cougars went into Thursday’s non-league contest at Rangeview with a 5-0 record and emerged with a 2-2 draw against the dangerous Raiders, who haven’t lost in four games now themselves.
Senior striker Zach Goodenow scored twice in the second half to erase the 1-0 deficit Cherokee Trail faced at halftime, but Ruben Zuniga got the equalizer for Rangeview (2-0-2) in the 68th minute and the teams played 32 minutes of scoreless soccer — including a pair of five-minute overtimes — with playoff-like intensity.
Goalkeeper Devin Reimer made 14 saves — several of the spectacular variety — to keep Cherokee Trail in a game in which Rangeview exerted a ton of pressure.
Troy Hudson had the lone goal of the first half, giving the Raiders a 1-0 edge when he finished in close on a service by Zuniga in the 15th minute.
Goodenow was in the right place at the right time twice in just over a minute span early in the second half.
First, he flicked a ball by Gerardo Velazquez that took a hop in front of Rangeview goalkeeper Beau Helgerson and spun into the corner of the net as Helgerson stumbled as he scrambled to cut it off to tie the score.
Just 1:09 later, Cherokee Trail’s Jerdan Danials launched an indirect free kick that landed in the box in front of Helgerson, who muffed the ball as he went to bring it in. Goodenow crashed the net on the shot and got a foot on the loose ball, rolling it across the goal line to give the Cougars the lead.
Rangeview turned up the pressure and Alex Amador was taken down outside the box, drawing a free kick chance for the Raiders.
Zuniga ripped a shot past Cherokee Trail’s wall and just inside the the near post, beating an outstretched Reimer to tie the game in the 68th minute.
The Raiders kept pressing for the go-ahead goal, but just missed connection on several chances in the air. When they did get a shot on frame, Reimer came up big.
In the first overtime session, Rangeview’s Marcos Wolde blasted a rising shot that might have found its way into the top of the goal if not for Reimer skying to tip the shot over the crossbar.
Neither team generated a dangerous scoring chance in the second overtime until Rangeview’s Fernando Chavez was tripped up by Cherokee Trail’s Joe Finn in the closing seconds in the goal box, but was not awarded a penalty kick as time expired.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555
CHEROKEE TRAIL 2, RANGEVIEW 2 (2OT)
Score by halves:
Cher. Trail 0 2 0 0 — 2
Rangeview 1 1 0 0 — 2
SCORING
First half
Rangeview — Troy Hudson (Ruben Zuniga), 15th minute
Second half
Cherokee Trail — Zach Goodenow (Gerardo Velazquez), 45th minute
Cherokee Trail — Goodenow (Jerdan Danials), 46th minute
Rangeview — Zuniga, 68th minute
Shots on goals — Cherokee Trail 5, Rangeview 16. Saves — Cherokee Trail: Devin Reimer 14, Rangeview: Eric Zuniga 2, Beau Helgerson 1. Fouls — Cherokee Trail 16, Rangeview 18. Corner kicks — Cherokee Trail 3, Rangeview 6. Yellow cards — Cherokee Trail: Tanner Cho; Rangeview: Sergio Ramirez, Brandon Scott, Marcos Wolde.