Durango didn’t know what to expect when it started a trip to Colorado Springs for a pair of games. Now the Demons know to expect a bit tighter officiating.
The Durango High School boys lacrosse team endured 11 minutes, one shy of an entire quarter, of penalty minutes Thursday at St. Mary’s. But the Demons atoned for those mistakes with a 9-6 victory.
“The referees call a lot tighter game on the Front Range than we’re used to,” DHS head coach John Robinette said. “We only let one man-down goal for being almost a whole quarter of a man down. That was promising.”
Durango (7-2, 3-2 Mountain League) was two men down twice but didn’t allow a goal either time. The Demons incurred a four-minute penalty and also didn’t give up a score on that infraction. Robinette credited the strong defense of Connor Collins in his return after missing four games with a shoulder injury. Goalie Dylan Gaver also made 11 big saves.
“Connor Collins anchored that defense,” Robinette said. “Gaver had one of his best games of the year in goal.”
Cullen Robinette led the team in points with one goal and four assists. Kyle Robinette scored three goals and had one assist. Tommy Rodgers added two goals and one assist. Collin Barkley finished with one goal and one assist. Corbin Randle and Ryan Smith each had one goal, and TJ Rifkin and Jackson Steigelman each had an assist.
Coach Robinette credited the goalie of St. Mary’s (2-5) for making big saves. The Robinette brothers and Rodgers combined for 26 shots and scored on six of them.
DHS will stay on the Front Range to face Fountain Valley (3-2) at 4 p.m. Friday.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
