Broomfield aiming to repeat behind junior Chapleski

Eagles aiming to repeat behind junior Chapleski

By John Rosa, Special to the Rocky

Published August 27, 2008 at 7 p.m.

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Photo by Linda McConnell/Special to the Rocky

Broomfield’s Cole Chapleski scored the winning goal in last year’s title game and is hoping for a repeat performance.

Walking into a local movie theater recently, Cole Chapleski spotted a group of classmates from Broomfield High School already seated in the crowd. As he went over to say hello, one of them asked him if he was going to take off his shirt.

It's a question he has been asked quite a bit in the past nine months.

In November, Chapleski scored the winning goal in the Class 4A championship game, heading in a direct kick from Gabe Whitney in the fourth minute of overtime to lift the Eagles to a 1-0 victory against Mullen.

Overcome with emotion, Chapleski celebrated by pulling his shirt over his head and running wildly on the turf at Englewood Stadium, and he hasn't been able to live it down since.

"I went a little bit crazy, but I think rightfully so," said Chapleski, a junior forward. "I was a little bit nuts, but it was the best soccer moment of my life. But I think if I have a chance to do it again, I might be a little more subdued."

With a talented group returning to the pitch for Broomfield, Chapleski is hoping to get another chance this season. No one knows better how hard it is to repeat than Eagles coach Jim Davidson, who is entering his 12th year with the team.

Davidson has led Broomfield to four boys state championships (he also won one with the girls) but hasn't been able to win any back to back.

During Davidson's most recent repeat bid, after winning the 2005 title, he steered the Eagles through an undefeated regular season only to see the team self-destruct in a 4-0 loss to Liberty in the 2006 championship game.

"It's not an easy thing to do and it's something we've yet to achieve," Davidson said about winning consecutive championships. "That's a conversation we've had with the boys. We've set that as our top goal this season, and I think this is a group that's capable of that."

Chapleski well remembers the disappointment of the 2006 season, and although he was only a freshman, he remembered how bad it hurt to walk off the field without the trophy.

"I think we went into that championship game with the wrong mind-set," Chapleski said. "The team kind of felt like it could just show up and win.

"If we're fortunate enough to make it back to the finals this year, God willing, we'll know we still have to work hard and have a game to play."

The 6-foot-2 Chapleski, athletic and hard to beat in the air, has started to make a name for himself nationally through his play this summer.

His club team recently won an international tournament in Ohio, and he was one of only three Colorado players to participate in the adidas ESP camp at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, according to Davidson.

"He's a really special player," Davidson said. "He's a soccer junkie, which I love. He can't get enough of the sport."

And although Chapleski already is attracting attention from Division I schools around the country, he is determined to make his time at Broomfield memorable. He would like to be part of the first group of players to win two in a row and wouldn't mind adding a third ring as a senior, although he said that isn't even on his radar.

Even if that doesn't happen, he realizes how great it is to be playing with the friends he grew up with.

"There's nothing better than having a home game under the lights in front of your friends and the community," said Chapleski, who had 12 goals and eight assists as a sophomore. "To be able to play where you grow up is an honor."

It might even be something worth taking your shirt off for.

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