The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Home playoff game Saturday, May 9
[ by Than Acuff ]The Crested Butte Titans girls’ soccer team wrapped up the regular season with a flurry of games playing a total of six matches in the final two weeks and are now headed into the 2A state tournament ranked fourth.
This past week presented quite a few challenges for the Titans hosting the Telluride Miners on Tuesday, April 28 and then hitting the road to take on the Montrose Red Hawks on Thursday, April 30 and then closing the week back on the road to face the Colorado Springs Christian Lions on Saturday, May 2.
They opened it with a bang handing the Miners a 6-0 loss, but it took a while for the Titans to find the finishing touch. After threatening in the opening minute and then several times after that, they finally broke the seal in the 16th minute when Molly Miller ran onto a through ball from Calla Fenlon to push it past the Miner goalie for a 1-0 lead.
The Miner goalie and their defense scrambled to hold the Titans to that lone goal in the first half, but Crested Butte poured it on in the second half starting with a goal from Brie Polster three minutes in. Three minutes later, Miller and Fenlon combined to create a space for Nora Thomes and Thomes took a pass from Fenlon to score and put the Titans up 3-0. Fenlon then corralled a shot off the crossbar by Miller to punch it past the Miner keeper for a 4-0 lead and then scored a second time midway through the half for a 5-0 lead. Miller then capped the five-goal second half with a goal in the final five minutes for the 6-0 win.
“We made some adjustments at halftime and told them to just stay calm, it’s coming,” says head coach Tom Lewis. “Five goals in the second half were fantastic.”
Two days later the Titans headed to Montrose for a non-league challenge against another 4A team. And despite the Titans history against the Red Hawks, Crested Butte opened the game brimming with confidence and taking immediate control of the match.
“We knew their formation and dangerous players and I felt we could match them and play better than them in all areas,” says Lewis.
Montrose did pose a counterattack threat with some speed and skill up top but the back three of Rio Crabtree, Kalyn Buckel and Lola Wright had them sealed up and goalie Bryce Haskell came up with the needed stops. Crested Butte closed the first half to a shot off the crossbar and another close chance but were held off by the Red Hawks back line sending the teams into halftime scoreless.
Much of the same continued in the second half. While Montrose brought some speed and physicality, Crested Butte responded with grit and composure but neither team managed to find the final touch for a 0-0 tie.
“I felt like we matched and/or exceeded them in every department, and we were disappointed we didn’t win,” says Lewis.
Crested Butte then returned to the road to finish the regular season on Saturday, May 2 against Colorado Springs Christian. It was a tough endeavor given the lead up to the match.
“We knew they would be organized and had some good players,” says Lewis. “And nobody was going to be 100% in their sixth game in 11 days.”
While the Titans appeared to be the better team, the Lions were diligent in their defensive stance for the game. While noticeably weary from the past two weeks of matches and the battle with Montrose two days prior, Crested Butte did prove the better team with a majority of the possession and creating better chances on net.
Still, Colorado Springs managed to hold off the Titans attack for all 80 minutes with a well-organized defensive stance and solid midfielders leaving the Titans with their second 0-0 draw in a row.
“I thought our defensive third and midfield third were really good, we just couldn’t unlock their defense in the final third,” says Lewis. “But credit to the team and the coaches going the whole week without conceding a goal. If we’re not getting scored on, we’re still in the game.”
The Titans now enter the post-season tournament the fourth seed and will host their first playoff game on Saturday, May 9, time TBD. They are slated to play the winner of the Colorado Springs Christian/Rocky Mountain Lutheran first round game. Until then, Lewis and the coaching staff look to use the week off from games to prepare accordingly for their first tournament game.
“We feel pretty solid,” says Lewis. “We will work on finishing in and around the box and get reps in on that. The big goal is to enjoy every practice and enjoy the week. Don’t go into the weekend stressed. Focused but fun.”
