Soccer can be a cruel sport, but where heartbreak abounds, euphoria is right there on the flip side. All it took was one favorable bounce to send No. 5 Silver Creek past No. 12 Niwot during the second round of the Class 4A state playoffs on a frigid Wednesday night at Silver Creek.

The Granite Peaks League rivals needed 10 extra minutes to decide who would advance. Sophomore midfielder Parker Brown tapped in the lone goal of the 1-0 contest thanks to a few ricochets in the goal box. His shot ultimately bounced off of the face of Niwot senior keeper Malachi Gilmore.

“There was a gap in the middle of the back. I ran through,” Brown explained. “I wasn’t expecting to get there, because their defender just missed it. There were a couple lucky bounces off of everyone, and then I just poked it in. It wasn’t the most beautiful goal, but it was hungry. It mattered.”

The late score secured the Raptors’ spot in the quarterfinals for just the second time in school history. They’ll take on No. 4 Centaurus for a rematch of the league title on Saturday at 1 p.m. The last time the two teams met, they ended with a tie and an identical league record, which left the GPL title up to playoff seeding. Centaurus barely beat out Silver Creek.

“Man, it feels awesome. Just winning, getting past the second round, keeping our season alive, fighting for more and more games. I’m looking forward to the rest of the season,” Brown said. “ I think it’s the leaders that we have. Our captain, Aris Lindquist, he really just steps up every game. Ryan Courtney, Kaden Riedel really just get us going in the pregame talking. It’s always just fun to play for everyone around you, and I just love playing with these boys. There’s so much community, and we just have the best bond.”

Niwot, in contrast, saw its 9-6-2 season come to an end through one of the most unforgiving leagues in the state. Wednesday night’s contest more than proved that fact. The Cougars and Raptors kept play tight throughout the first half, ensuring that their keepers would be bored in their respective goal boxes.

Silver Creek turned up the intensity throughout much of the second half only to cede momentum to the Cougars through the final 15 minutes of regulation and beyond. Gilmore contributed save after terrific save but was betrayed by his own face in the end.

It was bright red in the minutes following the finale — and not from the cold.

“I’ve honestly never been in overtime, and that alone is just a demonstration of the strength of each (team) and the fact that each of them can hold out until what, five minutes until the end of the first overtime? It’s insane,” Gilmore said. “ I thought we were the better team for that 15 minutes of the second half and the first half, and I think our passion and our courage really showed up tonight.”