If the Durango Demons can win their final two games of the season, they will be champions of the Southwestern League.
The Durango High School boys soccer team put itself in grand position atop the SWL on Saturday with a 2-0 win against CHSAANow.com No. 10 Montrose. The Demons (10-2-1, 5-1 SWL) lost 1-0 on Sept. 12 at Montrose (8-3, 4-1 SWL), and the 2-0 win Saturday will give DHS the goal-differential tiebreaker if the teams both finish 7-1 in league games.
“If we win out, then we win the league outright now instead of going to a variety of tiebreakers and all that stuff,” DHS head coach Dalon Parker said. “If Montrose is a top-10 team in the state, and we win the league outright with a team that has been at the top of the state all year, we should be a top-eight or 10-seed in the state tournament, easy.”
DHS dominated Montrose all game, outshooting the Indians 15-7 and putting six shots on goal to just one from Montrose.
Montrose was whistled for a hand ball in its own box just 19 minutes into the match, and DHS senior captain Logan Graham stepped up and buried the accompanying penalty kick past Montrose goalkeeper Keegan Sullinger.
“You just gotta keep composure, keep your cool, and make sure you slot it into the corner,” the son of Scott and Susan Graham said of the penalty-kick goal. “I just kind of led the keeper with my eyes a bit and put it to the right, and luckily I was able to get it going and get us up 1-0 for the team. It was a great feeling.”
The Demons knew one more goal would give them the goal-differential advantage, and DHS freshman Elijah Fenton proved able to beat the Indians’ back line of defense.
Fenton took a pass from senior attacking midfielder Tony Williams and placed a shot from the top right side of the box to the far post past Sullinger. The ball hit the post, but some backspin generated from the impact curled the ball back into the goal to give the Demons their 2-0 advantage.
“There was a lot of pressure on (the ball), but I tried to keep my cool,” said Fenton, son of Mike and Wendy Fenton. “I didn’t try to overpower it. I tried to find the corner, slip it in. I got a little lucky, but everyone does.”
Montrose didn’t get a shot on frame until the second half, and it barely tested DHS senior goalie Lars Schwaebe. Still, the Indians mustered up chances on four corner kicks, but Schwaebe and the Demons’ defense kept their cool.
“Goalkeeping is just a mental game. You have to stay in the zone, and I did. I kept solid,” said Schwaebe, son of Charles Schwaebe and Bitten Skertvedt.
Montrose head coach Jim Pavlich said DHS deserved the win after playing a clean and technical game, and he hopes both teams can make a deep run in the state tournament.
“Durango possessed the ball well and outshot us pretty fiercely in the first half,” Pavlich said. “We had very few quality shots, and Durango deserved the win.
“It will be interesting to see how the season plays out now. I wish them the best of luck, and I want them to kick butt everywhere they go. We all need to do well in the playoffs, and I hope to see them again in the finals, next time with a different result.”
In the Demons’ 1-0 loss at Montrose earlier this year, DHS felt like it got the better of the Indians in the second half. That confidence spilled over into Saturday.
“It’s always a big game. Montrose at home. They’re always our Southwest(ern) League rival,” Graham said. “Give us a win here puts us in front. There was a lot of pressure, but we thought we were better than them coming in. We kind of worked hard in practice and were able to get what we needed, a good result for us.”
jlivingston@ durangoherald.com
