BAYFIELD
Head coach Jen Zelinski barely recognized the Bayfield High School girls soccer team in Tuesday’s first half.
The Wolverines allowed their first goal of the season in the fourth minute and struggled to regain possession.
A more inspired second half couldn’t keep BHS from its first loss of the year, 2-1 to Alamosa at Wolverine Country Stadium.
Alamosa senior Tayleur Hillis broke a 1-1 tie in the 63rd minute on a breakaway by perfectly placing her shot from inside the box over BHS sophomore Kailee Millard, who played the entire game in goal after splitting time with Savannah Kaufmann in games earlier this season.
“One lapse in the back because we didn’t get the ball out of the air cost us,” coach Zelinski said.
The Wolverines (2-1, 0-1 3A Region 5) responded from a poor first half with more possession and better effort in the second 40 minutes.
They put three of their four shots on goal after halftime and tied the game in the 47th minute on a laser shot from outside the 18-yard box by junior Maddy Duran. Alamosa’s keeper didn’t stand a chance against the shot. It was Duran’s third goal this season.
Junior Lexa Fleming provided a scintillating assist, as well.
“Their keeper was playing pretty far off her line,” said Duran, daughter of Joanna and Tom Duran. “I give all the credit to my teammates. I don’t score without them.”
Allowing the tying goal affected Alamosa’s body language.
The Mean Moose (2-0, 1-0 3A Region 5) allowed BHS to take seven of the next eight shots before putting a ball on frame.
“I think we got a little complacent after Bayfield scored,” Alamosa head coach Martin Wolffe said. “We done a good job of getting back in. It took a while to pick it up and get back in.”
BHS didn’t let up its pressure.
The Wolverines took three corner kicks in the last two minutes of the game but could not find an equalizer to force overtime.
“With the exception of the first half (Tuesday) we’ve been getting better every game,” coach Zelinski said. “In the second half, we did a lot better than the first half. I don’t know who that was in the first half.”
Alamosa moved to the top of the league with the victory very early on in the season, but the Wolverines still have 11 games left to catch up.
Their next contest will be a scrimmage with Durango High School’s junior varsity at 4 p.m. Thursday in Bayfield.
The game was rescheduled from earlier in the season and downgraded to an exhibition because of a lack of referees.
“My team is strong enough to come back and win this league,” Duran said. “We have to prepare to come back and beat these guys at their field, but we’re a strong enough team to win this league still.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
