Titans survive crazy weekend of soccer

Rebound from devastating homecoming loss

It may have been the craziest weekend of soccer in a long time for the Crested Butte Titans. Hopes were high heading into the homecoming weekend as the Titans hosted the Telluride Miners on Friday, September 20 and the Pagosa Springs Pirates on Saturday, September 21.
The Titans handed the Miners a 4-1 loss in the first game of the season this year and were looking to treat the fans to a homecoming victory at Rainbow Field.
But, as is often the case, a team can play good soccer and still wind up on the wrong end of the score sheet. Suffice it to say, the Titans couldn’t buy a goal Friday afternoon, losing to Telluride 1-0.
The Titans opened the game hot, scrambling for loose balls and finding open players through the first 10 minutes with a solid passing attack. The effort produced two golden scoring chances but the shots missed their marks and the Titans cooled off for the next 20 minutes.
The Miners capitalized on a miscue in front of the Titans net to score 15 minutes into the game and took the 1-0 lead into halftime. Nevertheless, the Titans were happy with their play and knew that success would come if they maintained their pace and style of play.
Just as plans were being set in place during the halftime break, the team was hit with a huge loss as starting striker and the team’s leading scorer, Kaleb Schultz, needed urgent care and had to be taken from the field.
With Schultz out of the line-up, adjustments were made and the Titans picked up where they left off, to continue to press the Miners back in their defensive third. Jorge Rodriguez, Thomas Taaca, Nate Hoskin and Henry Sunter remained tight on defense and goaltender Josh Pruett made the necessary saves to hold the Miners to their tenuous one-goal lead. Unfortunately, the trouble came in the offensive third as the Titans continued to miss numerous chances on net.
“They were able to keep it together in the second half. They just couldn’t put the ball in the goal,” says coach Drew Canale.
With 15 minutes left in regulation, Rodriguez was moved up-field to provide additional offensive punch but suffered an injury and had to be removed from the game as well. Nevertheless, the Titans kept pressing but Telluride managed to hold off the constant barrage and secure the 1-0 win over Crested Butte. In the end, the Titans hit the post three times, missed three open looks from inside the penalty area and therefore came up short on the day.
“It was tough luck,” says Canale. “They played really well but weren’t able to score.”
The next day would prove to be another big test of the Titans’ resolve as they hosted the Pagosa Springs Pirates. The Pirates are renowned for their intensity and hustle and have an explosive counterattack that catches teams off guard. Adding to the mix, the Titans were down two starters and still reeling from the loss of Schultz.
Taaca was called on to anchor the defense and Josh Melnick returned to his comfort zone as a central defender and the two combined to turn away several Pirate counters. Meanwhile, the Titans attack mirrored their effort against Telluride with one major difference—they found their scoring groove.
The Titans took a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the game when Justin Smith dropped a corner kick at the top of the six-yard box. Melnick rose up to flick a header to the far post and Gus Hensley followed to push it past the Pirate keeper.
Five minutes later, the Titans struck again as Taisei Matsui sliced through the Pirate defense to score the Titans second goal. Eight minutes later the Titans struck a third time as Sam Reaman carried the ball down the sideline and found Rodriguez crashing the net with a low cross and Rodriguez finished it off for a 3-0 Titans lead.
The Pagosa team shook off the bus ride and started finding their rhythm on offense and caught the Titans off guard with another quick transition to score, but the Crested Butte defense reorganized and midfielders Isaac Evans, Sebastian Infante and Patrick Seifert shut off the Pirate attack to take a 3-1 lead into halftime.
Pagosa has always posed a threat no matter what the score, and came out in the second half looking to start chipping away at the Titans lead. Their strikers were wreaking havoc up top with precision skill-work but hustle made the difference as the Titans defense maintained near-perfect shape to turn away attacks.
Crested Butte got some breathing room midway through the second half as Hensley carried the ball to the end line and crossed it to Jordi Nichols, who tapped it home and the Titans finished the game strong to seal the 4-1 win.
“They played their game, picked it up a little bit, got the bounces to go their way and scored four goals against a good Pagosa team,” says Canale. “It was a huge win for our season and for our confidence.”
The Titans head to Ridgway for their next league game and then have a week off of competition before heading to Pagosa Springs for a rematch with the Pirates on Friday, October 3.