Roundup

GHS soccer falls in quarterfinals

It was just 15 minutes, but to Susan Powers it seemed like an eternity.

In a 1-0 second round win in the Class 2A state tournament Cesar Marmolejo scored the go-ahead goal with 15 minutes left in the match. 

Even though Powers and the Cowboys planned to stick with the style of play that got them there, things changed and time slowly dripped off the clock. Eli Coop joined Zavier Drendel at center back and Sam Anderson knuckled down between the pipes to make history for the Cowboys. 

At No. 21 Cowboys were the lowest seed left in the tournament, and they made the deepest playoff run in program history.

“Going into the game we said we were not going to change anything,” Powers said. “We knew we wanted to focus on our defense and try to turn in a clean sheet. That’s how you win games. We hoped we would just get a couple of good scoring opportunities.

“It might have been the longest 15 minutes of my life.”

The Cinderella story came to an abrupt end with a 4-0 quarterfinal loss at Forge Christian on Saturday. A dusty first goal came on a flip-toss throw in that officials ruled Anderson touched before it went in the back of the net. 

Forge added two more goals in the first 15 minutes and put the match out of reach. But, Powers sees the Cowboys have built something special with the program. There’s more interest at the recreational level in town and the young players on the rise have a standard towards which they’ll strive. 

“It’s been kind of a slow and steady development over time,” Power said. “But we are headed in the right direction. The commitment and buy in from players gets a little better every year. We spend a little more effort coaching and building the program the way we want. We are always strategizing how the puzzle pieces best fit together when building this program.”

 Awards season for softball

The post season accolades are in for the GHS softball team. The Cowboys (12-12, 7-5 3A Western Slope) lost a first-round playoff game to Alamosa 19-12 on Oct. 18.

 Starting pitcher Reese Japuntich was named 1st Team All-League WSL 3A. 

Caroline Sudderth, Maddy Bacalis and Kaylee Vincent were named All league 2nd team WSL. The Colorado Coaches of Girls Sports All-State honored Bacalis and Vincent. 

Japuntich was also named to the CHSAA Softball All-State Honorable Mention team.