LAFAYETTE >> Boulder boys soccer has been nothing short of spectacular through its first few games of the 2024 season, and on Tuesday night the Panthers took their success to another level.

Led by the unforgiving attack of senior star forward Xander Sevian, Class 5A’s second-ranked Panthers put on a clinic at Centaurus, itself ranked No. 1 in CHSAA’s Class 4A Selection & Seeding Index, to beat out their hosts with a 4-0 final.

Sevian netted a hat trick in the effort, bringing his season total to five goals through four games. His confidence was on full display after his second score, when he put his hands behind his ears in response to taunts from the home crowd.

“We have so much depth this year, and even past our starting 11, we just have really solid players everywhere, really good players,” Sevian said. “We just have a system this year that’s working really well for us, just playing the ball fast and connecting and getting forward.”

The victory kept Boulder’s record sparkling (4-0) while handing the Warriors (3-1) their first bruise of the season. Centaurus had kept all of their previous opponents scoreless.

After a tight first half that kept both offenses laying in wait, the Panthers took on the role of a viper. They struck twice — and quickly — to poison the momentum that Centaurus spent the first 38 minutes trying to claim.

The first goal proved painful not only for the Warriors, but for one of Boulder’s star players. Junior midfielder Mikel Mackey, who entered the game with three goals and three assists, drew Centaurus keeper Nicholas Jones into the right corner of the goal box, then launched a ball into the left side of the net before the two collided.

Mackey left the game with apparent injury after that, needing a few minutes to regain his bearings before returning in the second half.

That short injury delay gave the Panthers all the juice they needed to recoil and strike again, their potential energy fully kinetic now. Sevian sprinted straight toward the net and sunk another score into the same spot 27 game-clock seconds later.

Their 2-0 lead at the half promised more to come, the floodgates flowing freely by that point. In the 63rd minute, Sevian took advantage of a free kick that fell just a yard outside of the goal box, converting it into an easy goal over a keeper that hadn’t given up a single score before that game.

“The boys definitely started a little slow, but in the second half, we came out hot and really just the passes were connecting,” Sevian said. “We started flowing. We started getting more chances and more chances, and with chances like that, the goals will come. (Centaurus) did great in the first half, just really making it hard for us to play, making it hard for us to keep the ball.”

He took one last ball on a perfect assist from his fellow senior and Estes Park transfer, David Bojorquez, to quiet the crowd once and for all.

Boulder, still perfect, will head home to host Cherry Creek on Thursday night, while Centaurus searches for its first bounce back of the season at Mullen on the same night.

“They pressed a lot more and they just brought more energy than we’ve seen from other teams. They were just bringing energy all game,” Jones said. “The more we started to move around the back, the more we let them dribble and stuff. It was just harder for us to get momentum.”

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