Joshua Muñoz fends off a Telluride defender.A high danger chance forced Sam Anderson into a sprawling dive. The GHS senior goalkeeper tracked a shot bound for the corner of the net — ending in a save that helped the GHS boys soccer team secure a 0-0 draw with Class 5A powerhouse Grand Junction on Oct. 7.
The tie marked Anderson’s third clean sheet of the season and 16th save on the night.
“I just got a few fingers on it when I dove and pushed it out,” Anderson said. “It resulted in a corner, but we pushed that out too.”
The stalemate resulted in GHS jumping 10 slots in the playoff standings. But it also showed the Cowboys could adapt tactically to a defensive shape.
“We went into that game trying to have fun and use it as a learning experience and we played amazing,” Anderson said. “We went in treating it as an experimental game. But it fully worked out. It played into our favor, everything we put into effect fell into place. The last five minutes we were completely on our toes. We were on edge.”
Heading into the matchup, the GHS backline suffered a handful of injuries, prompting Head Coach Susan Powers to turn to midfield reinforcements.
Eli Coop and Zavier Drendel seamlessly slid into the backline. It was a move that limited the GHS scoring chances, forcing the Cowboys to play a tight, controlled match.
“We shut them down,” Powers said. “I definitely knew we wouldn’t generate as much offense and our counter attacks would be limited. We had some good looks, but couldn’t get the ball in the back of the net.”
With two matches left, the tie kept GHS inside the playoff bracket. Now sitting at No. 18, the Cowboys will need to finish inside the top 24 teams to qualify for the postseason. The boys will return to action in Telluride on Oct. 18, and finish the regular season at home against Delta on Oct. 23.
“I like the momentum we have going into this little break,” Powers said. “I think it’s valuable to let our defenders heal up.”
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here