It took only a few seconds for Alex Gunberg to transform a dormant soccer game into something that had the large contingent of Colorado Academy students saying "that was so sick."

If sick can be used as an adjective to describe something overwhelmingly positive, then Mustangs fans were right on with their assessment.

Gunberg's picturesque goal got Colorado Academy going in the Class 3A quarterfinals, and the third-seeded Mustangs went on to thump visiting James Irwin 3-0 on a brilliant fall Thursday at Firman Field.

"Once you get to the playoffs, especially the quarterfinals, the first goal is very important because it punches them in the mouth," Gunberg said. "It shows them that the team means business and is out there to win it. Not just to play defense."

Late in the first half, Gunberg outraced a defender for a loose ball in the far left corner. He managed to keep the ball in play, evade a defender, juke another, then fire a low shot past James Irwin keeper Matt Gomez.

"I did it off of hustle, hard work" Gunberg said of his 20th goal of the season.

With the seal broken, Colorado Academy (15-3) scored two minutes later, when Mac Freeman left-footed in a shot from the top of the box to give the Mustangs a 2-0 lead in the 33rd minute.

Demitri Carahalios added a goal in the 76th minute to punctuate the win.

"They had a pretty relentless attack most of the time," James Irwin coach Kevin Ridenour said. "They like to play the long ball and they have some fast forwards. . . . They don't shoot it from out wide. They make sure they have their shots on frame."

Colorado Springs-based James Irwin (13-3-1), the No. 6 seed, played in the same region as top- seeded Colorado Springs Christian, and Ridenour wasn't quite ready to put Colorado Academy in that class yet.

But before the Mustangs can worry about a possible matchup with Colorado Springs Christian, they'll have to get past Denver Christian in Saturday's semifinals. DC beat the Mustangs 2-0 during the season.

"When they beat us 2-0, we didn't come out as hard as we should have," Freeman said. "If we come out hard, I think we'll win."

James Irwin0 0 - 0

Colorado Academy2 1 - 3

Goals - C, Alex Gunberg (unassisted), 31st minute; C, Mac Freeman (Mark Abman), 33rd; C, Demitri Carahalios (Gunberg), 76th.

Shots - J, 1-2-3. C, 10-5-15. Shots on goal - J, 1-2-3. C, 5-3-8. Saves - J (Matt Gomez) 3-2-5. C (Bobby Thalman) 1-2-3. Corner kicks - J, 1-1-2. C, 4-3-7. Yellow cards - J, Joshua Gulledge (54th), David Groves (65th). C, Romain Vakilitibar (39th), Ben Alexander (62nd).