Winners of the Southwestern League, the Durango Demons were rewarded accordingly Sunday.
Durango High School received the No. 9 seed out of 32 teams in the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A boys soccer state tournament.
Thanks to earning the ninth seed, the Demons (12-2-1) will host a state tournament game Wednesday against No. 24 Vista Ridge (11-4) out of Colorado Springs. The game time will be determined Monday.
“It is really exciting. It’s been awhile since we’ve been at home in the playoffs,” DHS head coach Dalon Parker said. “It’s one of the higher seeds we’ve ever had at Durango.”
Durango was placed in the same quadrant as No. 1 Air Academy (15-0), who beat the Demons 4-0 in the championship game of its Kadet Classic tournament on Sept. 6.
“We are excited to be in the same bracket as Air Academy. The first time we played them, it is really funny, the boys kind of had that deer in the headlights look,” Parker said. “We hadn’t seen that type of team before, but we watched film and broke down the game, and the guys have been champing at the bit to play Academy again. We have to take care of our business and get to the third round, but, if we do, it is what it is.”
If the Demons can get past the Vista Ridge Wolves on Wednesday, the Demons would play the winner of No. 8 Littleton (12-3) and No. 25 Mesa Ridge (9-6) on Oct. 28 in the Round of 16.
The Littleton Lions are a formidable team that finished second in the Jefferson County league behind No. 4 D’Evelyn (13-2).
Other than seeing his own team earn a No. 9 seed, Parker was thrilled to see how well Western Slope teams are represented in the 4A state tournament this year.
Montrose, the runner-up in the SWL, is the No. 14 seed and will host No. 19 Golden in the first round in No. 3 Cheyenne Mountain’s bracket. Summit is the No. 10 seed and will host No. 23 Lewis-Palmer in No. 2 The Classical Academy’s bracket. Steamboat Springs is the No. 29 seed and will travel to face No. 4 D’Evelyn, and Battle Mountain is the No. 20 seed and will travel to play No. 13 Fort Lupton.
“I’m still new to this part of Colorado, but that’s a lot of Western Slope teams in the playoff this year,” Parker said. “Battle Mountain and Steamboat both fought for at-large bids, and I hope all the teams can make some noise. It’s really exciting to see the respect the Western Slope got.”
Parker said his team broke the season down into three mini seasons, beginning with seven road games primarily on the Front Range. The Demons viewed the SWL schedule as the second season, and now the state tournament is the third season.
“We were successful in our first season with only one loss and tying one game, then we had a successful second season winning league,” Parker said. “Not, it’s the third season. We aren’t saving ourselves for the next game. It is win and advance. We will take it one game at a time.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
