Titans head to the championship in Denver

Titans players celebrate after the first goal of the game, scored by Maddie Bogard.

The Crested Butte Titans girls varsity soccer team shut out the Lamar Savages on Monday afternoon to win the 2A semifinals — the final score was 4-0. A rock wall of a defense coupled with superior conditioning allowed the Titans to turn a small early game lead into a monster win. 

A competitive first quarter saw the Titans playing into the wind. They reacted cleanly — when the ball did end up in the hands of Titans the goaltender, she would often pass the ball by hand to a nearby defenseman, trusting the team to play it up the field. And play it up, they did. Fifteen minutes in, a quick series of passes saw Leigh Harpel within reach of the goal, she shot but it rebounded off the post. 

When Lamar did manage to break through the midfield, a strong defense and some big saves from Titan goaltender, junior, Mara Pennie kept the scoreboard blank. 

Midway through the first half, Maddie Bogard scored the first goal of the game with the assist coming from Morgan Feltus. Close to the end, Bogard was close with a second but an off-sides call recalled the goal. 

At the half, with the scoreboard 1-0 for the Titans, Lamar looked tired. The team had traveled almost 4,000 feet in elevation for the game, and it showed. The Titans' acclimation to the altitude plus considerable conditioning showed particularly in the consistency with which they won foot races. 

That theme stayed true throughout the second half with the Titan’s advantage becoming increasingly apparent as the game dragged on. 

Assisted by Ellie O’Neal, Sofia Righetto scored the second goal for the Titans which was quickly followed up by Harpel. Then, with an assist by Campbell Ryan, Bogard scored a second time to seal the win. 

Head Coach Heather Culley says their performance on Monday was perfect and something they hope to replicate at the state championship game on Wednesday. 

“Our defense held their line pretty strong, and when we won the ball out of the air, we were in complete control,” she said. “Our outside mids stayed wide for the center mids to play out to and use the width of the entire field.”

“They played amazing yesterday,” she said. “They came out pumped and ready to play, and we wouldn't have changed a thing.”

Dawson School beat Denver Christian, 3-2, in the other semi-final game meaning they’ll play Crested Butte in the finals. Dawson holds a 12-5-1 overall season record, almost exactly the same as Crested Butte’s 12-5 record. 

The game was scheduled to take place at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Arena in Denver. Results were not available by press time.

(Jacob Spetzler can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or jacob@gunnisontimes.com.)