‘Digging in’: Ogden High boys soccer clears Ben Lomond scare for 39th straight win
Robinson nets game-winner to best valiant home effort by Scots
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- Ogden High greets Eli Robinson following his game-winner to defeat Ben Lomond 4-2 in penalty kicks following a double-overtime region boys soccer contest on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ben Lomond’s Anthony Garibay, center, releases the ball into play during a region boys soccer contest against Ogden High on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ben Lomond celebrates a goal by Izaiah Franco during a region boys soccer match against Ogden High on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Xavier Peregrina directs his defense during a region boys soccer contest on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Jace Rodriguez signals to his teammates before throwing the ball into play during a region boys soccer contest on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Ty Ward, left, and Ben Lomond’s Jovany Rosales, right, battle for possession during a region boys soccer contest on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Zeke Snow, left, and Jace Rodriguez, right, celebrate a goal during a region boys soccer contest on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at Ben Lomond High School in Ogden.
OGDEN — Guys like Eli Robinson are built for 80-plus-minute matches, and Ogden High boys soccer coach Todd Scott made sure that’s the case.
So, when Ogden’s senior forward drilled home the game-winner to the left of Ben Lomond goalkeeper Anthony Garibay, Scott was certainly relieved but not necessarily surprised, either.
The Scots, arguably one of the top three-win programs remaining in Utah as the regular season bends into the final couple of weeks, fell short of the two-time defending 3A champions yet again on penalty kicks, 4-2, after a double-overtime tie at 1-all on Tuesday afternoon at BLHS.
Ben Lomond’s brand of defensive, relentless soccer is plenty familiar, Scott said, and it nearly ended Ogden’s perfect season.
“Ben Lomond, man. Don’t let anybody’s record say otherwise,” Scott said. “They want it, and I mean you can see tonight, double-overtime and the shootouts, but what a game. I’m proud of my boys for digging in and being resilient and getting the job done.”
Instead, Robinson flushed home the decisive penalty kick and lifted the Tigers (12-0, 6-0 Region 12) over the Scots (3-6, 2-4) for a fifth consecutive time.
It’s been 743 days since BL last defeated its crosstown rival, including last year’s tumultuous overtime loss at the 3A state semifinals. It happens to have been 743 days since Ogden lost to anyone else, either.
Recalling his shot, Robinson said he’d already visualized his attempt before stepping up to the line. When he heard his name, it was already over.
“I don’t know, it’s crazy,” Robinson said. “I got called on, the moment came, and obviously (Peregrina) saved the first one, which made it a little bit easier to take off a little pressure. But I knew where it was going to go.”
Whoever Scott taps for that type of kick, he doesn’t worry if that player is up to the task. His team has won 39 consecutive matches dating back to the team’s run up to its fourth state title in 2024, which is the second-longest win streak in Utah boys soccer history.
“That’s what we pride ourselves on, as well. We know it’s going to be, often times, 80-plus minutes,” Scott said. “That’s kind of our bread and butter is being loosely fit and ready.”
Freshman Izaiah Franco drew first blood for the Scots four minutes into the contest and BL maintained that lead through halftime. Ogden senior Jace Rodriguez, unassisted, evened the board with 35:55 still to play following a brief injury stoppage.
Save for a Harry Hoskins try shortly after Rodriguez’s goal, the Tigers hardly scratched the post as much as Ben Lomond did through the end of the second half. Scots coach Paul Baltazar, praising his defense for its endurance down the stretch, said Tuesday also proved his squad isn’t a pushover.
“We’ll take it as a learning opportunity, and we’ll just continue to move forward,” Baltazar said. “… You want to push them to that expectation that this is where we’re going to stand, and today’s performance shows that if we turn it on when we want to turn it on, we’re absolutely insane in the back.”
Pauses in play became a regular sight for BL as both junior Luka Banda, exiting the match entirely, and freshman Joseph Alvarado, leaving briefly during the second overtime, each stepped off the field during extra minutes.
“It’s always a bad thing to see one of our players go out,” Baltazar said. “But know we represent him well whenever he does step out, not just Luca but anybody out there. We’re not just fighting for the people who are on the field.”
Conversely, Scott said his offense — which has benefited from defensive shutouts eight times this season, including the first five games of the regular season — can still become more assertive decision-makers ahead of the postseason.
“What we have in our top line, offensively, they’re so talented,” Scott said. “It’s just sometimes we just get so complacent, and sometimes we just lose focus, and they want to be, I call it ‘prime-time.’ Just be simple, one touch (and) take the shot (but) instead it’s touch, touch, touch — so it’s little things that we’ve gotta fix but, like I said, I’m proud they could dig in and finish.”
In the penalty shootout, Ogden proved itself the winner with four consecutive makes by Robinson, Rodriguez, Hoskins and senior Grant Aardema in the face of junior keeper Garibay, who’d held the Tigers scoreless for 80-plus minutes.
Garibay, the protege of BL graduate Oscar Castro Moreno, last year’s starting goalkeeper, has already won the favor of his coach.
“(Garibay) is always a standout guy, he’s always doing what he needs to do. So of course, his performance on the field, that’s to be expected,” Baltazar said. “He’ll ask a million questions when he doesn’t know, and that’s what I love about him. He never acts like he knows everything, and he’s always willing to learn.”
Opposite of Garibay, Peregrina emerged as the winning keeper despite giving up the early Franco goal and looking to his All-Area captain, Rodriguez, to settle the score in the early minutes of the second half.
Ogden’s senior goalkeeper didn’t relinquish another goal to the Scots, and instead rose to the challenge of a PK shootout, where he denied attempts by Alvarado and senior Fernando Marquez to lend his side the advantage.
When it comes to carrying more than his share, Peregrina isn’t one to shy away from his role as a veteran of the program and Ogden’s literal last line of defense, Robinson said after Tuesday’s win
“(Peregrina) leads in many ways,” Robinson said. “He leads by example, putting the work in. Obviously saving us many times, and he’s carried the team whenever we’ve needed him. He’s always there to step up.”
With a two-game lead in region play, Ogden lists just one more opponent, Logan (April 21), on its regular-season schedule, which wraps up an outright region title. Should the Tigers win out, it’ll be their second consecutive perfect regular-season record entering the playoffs.
BL, however, contests two more regular-season matches: another home bout with Logan (April 16) and one last road trip to Grantsville (April 21).
Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net, X @ctbecker, and Instagram at standardexaminersports.
