Eli Fenton of Durango High School celebrates with his team after scoring a goal against Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in first half of the second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS.
Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Austin Kelly of Durango High School keeps Bryan Vazquez of Skyview High School away from the ball in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS.
Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Durango gets ready to play Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Blake McClain of Durango passes the ball while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Max Wilson of Durango battles Pablo Reyes of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Camden Garland of Durango tangles with Bryan Vazquez of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
? of Durango High School takes a shot while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Rodrigo Morales of Durango High School tries to get the ball past goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Luke Stetler of Durango High School defends Bryan Vazquez of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Blake McClain of Durango High School headers the ball while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Rodrigo Morales of Durango High School tries to get the ball past goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Eli Fenton of Durango High School celebrates after scoring a goal against goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Eli Fenton of Durango High School celebrates after scoring a goal against goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Eli Fenton of Durango High School celebrates with his team after scoring a goal against goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Eli Fenton of Durango High School celebrates with his team after scoring a goal against goalie Ture Elamo of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Goalie Try Furnas of Durango High School shops a shot while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Ben Brandt of Durango High School gets fouled by Noah Espino of Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Camden Garland of Durango High School grabs the ball while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Leland Henikie of Durango High School pushes the ball while playing Skyview High School in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Austin Kelly of Durango High School keeps Bryan Vazquez of Skyview High School away from the ball in the Second round of the CHSAA playoffs on Tuesday night at DHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Upsets riddled the Class 4A bracket Tuesday night. The Demons made sure it wouldn’t happen to them in overtime.
On a night in which No. 1 Cheyenne Mountain, No. 2 Lewis-Palmer, No. 4 Air Academy and No. 5 Mullen all lost in the second round of the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A Boys Soccer Championships, the No. 7 Durango Demons hosted No. 10 Skyview (13-4) and held off an upset bid by the Wolverines from Thornton.
Austin Kelly, a DHS senior who has spent much of his career as a role player off the bench, came up with what he called one of the biggest goals of his life in overtime for the Demons. He found the ball on his foot at the top of the goal box and blasted a shot with his right foot that Skyview goalkeeper Ture Elamo had no chance to save to send the Demons to a 2-1 victory and the state quarterfinals.
“Just stay calm and keep it on target,” Kelly said of his thought process when he got the ball. “I’ve practiced that all year.”
DHS head coach Dalon Parker said he has begged Kelly to take more of those shots and hopes to see more in these playoffs, as DHS (16-1) will welcome No. 15 Valor Christian to Durango at 11 a.m. Saturday. The Valor Eagles (9-7-1) defeated No. 2 Lewis-Palmer in double overtime Tuesday night.
Tuesday night’s win was big for the Demons, who hadn’t been able to advance out of the second round in each of the past three seasons. For the Durango seniors, the win was made even more special by the fact they will host the quarterfinals with a bracket wide open for the taking, as No. 3 The Classical Academy now is the top team standing.
“If anybody in the state was prepared for this situation, it’s us,” Parker said. “We’ve gone to OT in the second round every single year the seniors have been part of the program. We got the proverbial monkey off the back.”
DHS struck first in the 22nd minute, as goalkeeper Trey Furnas launched a ball 70 yards downfield on a punt. Rodrigo Morales won the ball in the air and flicked it toward goal, and junior Elijah Fenton raced through the defense to get on the end of it. He slid in with his right foot and placed the ball past Elamo for a goal and a 1-0 Durango lead that stood until the second half.
Fenton missed the first-round game with an illness and said it felt great to be back with the boys as he scored his team-leading 11th goal of the season and first of these playoffs.
“I slipped through the defense, stayed calm and put it in the back of the net,” Fenton said of his goal. “I’m happy to come back and contribute to the team. We all played for each other out there.”
Elamo made highlight reel saves on several DHS chances. The senior from Skyview moved from Ethiopia less than four years ago and didn’t know English or organized soccer when he arrived, and Wolverines head coach Justin Thomas praised him for his performance all season.
Thomas’ team looked to steal momentum in the second half as a ball bouncing around in the box found the foot of Giovanni Delafuente, who tapped it past Furnas for a goal.
“We ran into a good team, and by beating them they helped us get ready for the next game,” Parker said. “We got to see what we were made of. We didn’t panic or freak out when they scored. We slumped our shoulders for a second but picked it back up.”
Durango’s defense limited the Skyview chances from there, pushing play to the sidelines and away from the goal box.
“It was physical, but if we want to go anywhere in state this year it’s going to be physical every game,” said DHS senior defender Black McClain. “We’re beyond excited, and this is an expression of how hard we’ve worked the last four years.”
Skyview had lost in the first round each of the last two years, and the Wolverines were heartbroken after the match while the Demons celebrated a chance to host the quarterfinals.
“(Kelly) put a ball in the back of the net that nobody could’ve saved,” Thomas said of Durango’s overtime winner.
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