Titans girls’ soccer win one of two over opening weekend

Tough opponents ahead

By Than Acuff

The Crested Butte Titans girls’ soccer team opened the season on the road with games against Basalt and Aspen on Friday and Saturday, March 14-15 in Grand Junction and came away with a heart-breaking tie and a solid win.

They started the weekend off with Basalt and coach Tom Lewis had an idea of what to expect.

“We knew Basalt plays a high (defensive) line, so we were able to get our wingers and forwards behind their back line easier,” says Lewis.

The struggles came though on the finishing touch as the Titans created numerous scoring chances from their play but couldn’t put the ball away. Eventually they found the final touch 20 minutes into the first half when Jacey Deroche played a ball through Basalt’s back line for Molly Miller to run onto and Miller roofed her shot over the keeper’s shoulder for a 1-0 lead.   

Crested Butte continued to find seams behind Basalt’s backline, but they remained stymied by Basalt’s goalie and were held to their 1-0 lead at halftime.

“We talked about breaking the second half into 10-minute sections and start by trying to get a second goal in that first 10,” says Lewis.

The second goal eluded the Titans and as the second half wore on, Basalt started to push with nothing to lose. Making matters worse, several Crested Butte players were out with calf cramps leaving the coaches to lean on their bench for varsity minutes in a tightly contested match.

“When the game was still 1-0 with 10 minutes left, you could see Basalt could feel it,” says Lewis.

The Titans still managed to hang on though until the final minute when Basalt converted on an indirect free kick to tie the game leaving the Titans with a 1-1 draw.

“Credit to their goalkeeper,” says Lewis. “It was just us trying to hang on, but the game should have been put to bed at that point. It was a great learning moment.”

While a tough pill to swallow, Crested Butte returned to the field on Saturday to then face the Aspen Skiers. While Lewis wasn’t necessarily upset with his teams’ effort the day before, he was happy to see what he saw out of his players on Saturday and their ability to shake off the prior game.

“A different team showed up Saturday,” says Lewis. “We asked them to keep the ball more, have more possession, and they did a fantastic job.”

Moving the ball and playing less direct created the Titans’ first goal of the game 21 minutes into the first half.  Dakota Redden took a pass and drove down the flank drawing the attention of the Aspen defense. Meanwhile, Hadley Brewer started her run from deep to get into the 18-yard box and when Redden played a cross into the area, Brewer was there to volley it home for a 1-0 lead.

“That was a fantastic goal,” says Lewis.

With Crested Butte’s back four of Lola Wright, Grace Bogard, Rio Crabtree and Madelyn Fitzgerald holding Aspen’s attack at bay, the Titans took their 1-0 lead into halftime again but came out in the second half with a renewed urgency.

After letting Basalt remain in the hunt the day before, the Titans scored in the first 10 minutes of the second half when Nora Thomes played a long diagonal pass to Calla Fenlon on the flank. Fenlon carried the ball and turned inside to fire a shot over the keeper and just inside the far post for a 2-0 Titans’ lead.

“That was a great strike,” says Lewis.

Crested Butte continued to out-possess the Skiers and created three more chances to score but the shots were off target. Aspen managed to put a scare in the Titans late in the game though as a perfectly placed through ball sent a Skier loose and she scored to pull within one. This time though the Titans sealed the deal to close out the 2-1 win.

“When Aspen scored, we start going through the same emotions as before, but they came through it,” says Lewis. “You could see the development from Friday to Saturday.”

Not only that but the Titans also proved they’re more than a one trick pony as three different players scored over the weekend with assists coming from three different players as well. 

Crested Butte has even tougher challenges ahead with a game against Buena Vista and another against Delta in a week. Crested Butte beat Buena Vista last year in the regular season, but Buena Vista ended up making it to the finals of the state tournament. Delta handed the Titans a 3-1 loss last year riding the shoulders of their all-state scorer who netted 49 goals last year and returns this year as a senior.

“That’ll be a good test,” says Lewis. “But I think we have enough quality across the field to create problems for them.”