PAGOSA SPRINGS – Her first scoring opportunity Friday afternoon, smothered by opposing goalkeeper Keira Davis, Ignacio senior Darlyn Mendoza-Lechuga seemed not to worry; she’d have more than just one chance.
She could thank Pagosa Springs head coach Trevor Gian and his players for a later converted opportunity.
Without the Lady Pirates’ willingness to play not one or two, but three players down to match up evenly with Tori Burch’s hurting Lady Bobcats, down to just nine players, there would have been no match inside Golden Peaks Stadium.
There’d be no celebration after avoiding a shutout loss despite having only seven field players for all but two minutes of stoppage time following Mendoza-Lechuga’s 40th-minute goal – bringing IHS back to 9-1 in an eventual 11-1 nonleague road loss.
Pagosa Springs improved to 5-4-2 overall with the win. Ignacio fell to 1-10 overall with the loss.
Hustled out to Archuleta County by her mother after interviewing for a potential college scholarship, senior Willow Schulz became the guests’ ninth player on the pitch, meaning Pagosa Springs could also send out a ninth, but ended up IHS’ eighth as senior Jillian Middlebrook wrecked her ankle and couldn’t continue after halftime.
Back down to a balancing eight themselves, the Lady Pirates went up 10-1 when junior Hailey Sams scored in the 47th minute and after Schulz’s less-injured right knee suddenly gave out in the 54th, requiring her removal, PSHS enacted the 10 goal mercy rule in the 55th as freshman Ximena Garcia first intercepted a Lorenzini goal kick, then watched as her subsequent shot clanged off Lorenzini’s near post and briefly paralleled the goal line before wobbling just far enough behind it to register.
Coincidentally, Mendoza-Lechuga had unsuccessfully clanged a 38th-minute try off the same post, before the sides swapped sides after intermission … after Ignacio ensured that there’d even be one.
Substituted in for Davis late in the first half, and charged with Mendoza-Lechuga’s goal against, junior Elizabeth Currier scored twice in the victory. Garcia – who’d converted an assist from senior Lauren Monterroso into the contest’s third-minute icebreaker – totaled four goals after having also scored in the 10th and 12th minutes.
Ignacio was to resume their own league work on the 30th with a doubleheader at Telluride, but Burch indicated that would likely be forfeited in hopes of healing up enough players to visit Bayfield on Thursday, May 2.
