Overtime appeared all but certain when crosstown girls soccer rivals Boulder and Fairview remained scoreless late in the second half Thursday evening.

However, the tide shifted in Boulder’s favor with just under four minutes remaining in regulation when Mia DeJohn was granted a free kick in her wheel zone. The Panthers senior put the perfect amount of spin on the shot and was rewarded with a game-winning goal at Recht Field, lifting BHS to the 1-0 win.

DeJohn described the goal as the biggest moment of her nearly complete high school soccer career.

“That’s my shot that I love from the left side because I’m a right-footed player,” said DeJohn, who’s committed to playing soccer at San Diego State. “It will probably be the highlight of my entire high school career.”

Boulder head coach Carlos Real knew his team was well-positioned to break the scoreless tie when DeJohn received a clear shot on net.

“The fact that we were able to give Mia an opportunity inside the 30(-yard line) to take a shot on goal, I will take it any game,” Real said. “Three minutes left or 10 minutes left, she’s just gonna deliver.”

To make DeJohn’s game-winner even more special, beating Fairview hasn’t come easy for Boulder in the past decade. After losing nine straight meetings from 2014-23, Boulder has now won the past two games against its biggest rival. “For the girls, it’s the biggest game,” Real said. “The seniors deserve it. It’s the most important game in Boulder, so we’re very happy.”

One year removed from reaching the Class 5A state tournament first round, Boulder improved to 4-0-1 on the young season. Fairview dropped to 3-2 following the Thursday evening heartbreaker. Although disappointed in the 1-0 final, Fairview senior Pailyn Pine said the Knights are coming together well with several new players seeing big minutes.

“It’s always really frustrating, especially in a game like this where it’s so close and it’s obviously a game that we want to win the most,” Pine said. “It’s frustrating, but at the end of the day, it’s just another game.”

Defensively, Boulder’s Maisie Creamer and Fairview’s Adeline Costello were both exceptional in the net.

“She’s (Creamer) one of the best leaders on the field and every game holds us there,” DeJohn said. “She’s a rock in everything.”

In the first half, Boulder controlled possession for much of the early going but couldn’t get many strong looks on net. Fairview, meanwhile, had several strong shots on goal in the first half, including one from senior Lucy Ochs midway through the period, but also couldn’t capitalize.

Even more, the Knights had three corner-kick opportunities and one free kick late in the first half. All were killed by either Boulder’s defensive front or Creamer.

“Even though I thought we were playing really good, we just couldn’t finish,” Pine said. “That ended up losing us the game.”

The Panthers and Knights are both off next week for spring break. Boulder returns to the pitch April 1 for a home match against Silver Creek while Fairview will visit Mead on April 3.