Honored along with her fellow seniors before the team’s match Tuesday afternoon, goalkeeper Bella Lorenzini went on to then stop 15 enemy shots as the Ignacio Bobcats girls soccer turned in far and away their best performance yet this spring.
Though visiting Del Norte would ultimately prevail 10-0, with junior forward Emma Parra toeing in sophomore forward Oralic Archuleta’s 76th-minute pass played just beneath a sliding Lorenzini’s left glove, head coach Gretchen Gruber’s gang walked off IHS Field well aware of how close they came to scoring at least two, if not three goals.
Particularly during the last 10 minutes of the first half, when the Bobcats generated multiple corner kicks and scoring chances. Senior Juliann Avila put a quality low shot on DNHS goalie Sophia Banderas in the 35th, though the sophomore made the save.
She’d then rob IHS junior Alexa Lopez Rodriguez, running onto a perfect through ball from sophomore Jada Davis after a strong buildup through midfield, in the 37th to preserve the guests’ 5-0 advantage going into halftime.
Finishing a set-up pass from sophomore Ella Cowett in the eighth minute, Parra netted the first goal, but Davis had nearly drawn first blood literally one minute earlier after receiving a pass from sophomore Amiyah Martinez.
After intermission, senior forward Leilany Soto increased the Tigers’ lead to 6-0 in the 43rd minute, but Ignacio (0-5 overall, 0-1 2A Intermountain-South) came together defensively and avoided further damage until sophomore Damaris Almeida forced in a 67th-minute goal after the ball escaped Lorenzini’s grip.
Parra then headed a high-bouncing Almeida chip, lofted over IHS junior defender Paisley Vezeau, over a leaping Lorenzini in the 69th, and logged Del Norte’s ninth goal in the 74th before her fifth marker ended the match early. Soto ended up totaling three goals and Cowett one.
DNHS (2-2, 1-0) out-cornered Ignacio 13-4 in the contest, and Banderas finished with five saves.
After hosting M-CHS (4-1, 3-0 3A Intermountain) on Thursday, the Bobcats will resume league work the next afternoon at Ridgway. Kickoff at Cimarron Athletic Field on Friday is set for 2 p.m.
BAYFIELD STRUGGLES IN CORTEZ: Becoming fast-emerging Montezuma-Cortez’s fourth consecutive shutout victim, Bayfield’s girls traveled on the Tuesday to M-CHS and fell 9-0.
The Panthers roared out to a 6-0 lead by halftime, as sophomores Kyndall Schmitt and Mia Glazner each posted a hat trick. Sophomore Emilynn Hill marked once in the rout, as did freshman Merolidth Avila and even junior Raegan Veach, who split goalkeeping duties with freshman Venice Rossiter.
Set to host Crested Butte Community School on Thursday, the Wolverines slipped to 2-4 overall (0-1 3A IML) after the loss to the Panthers. After welcoming CBCS (5-1-2, 1-0-0 2A Intermountain-South) to Wolverine Country Stadium, Bayfield will then head out to Alamosa on Saturday to resume league play. Kickoff at AHS is slated for noon.