The Pagosa Springs High School Pirate soccer team went 2-1 over the last week, suffering its first loss to the Crested Butte Titans on Tuesday, Sept. 17, in Crested Butte.
With two wins earlier in the week, first against the DSST: Montview Knights on Sept. 13 by a score of 2-1, and then a 1-0 victory against Manitou Springs on Sept. 14, the Pirates now have an overall record of 4-1-1.
Coach Trevor Gian commented on the Pirates’ performance against the Knights, saying he “felt like we could play with them.”
He mentioned the Knights “had some quality players all over.”
Gian explained that the Knights took an early lead, going up 1-0 by halftime.
He noted that the Pirates “adjusted a few things” tactically and formationally for the second half, which ended up working out.
Alex Pham drew a penalty kick inside of the Knights’ box, which Gavin Carter was able to convert, tying the match at 1-1.
Gian explained that the Pirates shifted their formation from a 4-2-3-1, into a 4-3-3, giving the Pirates some more speed and width going forward.
With the field being shorter than a standard size, the Pirates were able to get more pressure up top on the Knights’ defense, Gian explained.
He noted that after Carter’s goal, “the game opened up really well for us,” and the Pirates started creating more quality opportunities offensively.
Gian also noted that the Pirates were able to keep the Knights in check defensively by limiting their opportunities to create quality attacks.
Gian mentioned the game got “a little chippy” and the Pirates were able to earn more free kicks.
Milo Deitemeyer was able to score the Pirates’ second goal from a free kick 30 yards out from the Knight’s goal, Gian explained, noting that Deitemeyer’s strike was “a rocket.”
“It was fantastic,” Gian added.
At that point in the second half, the Pirates “dug in” defensively to see the rest of the game out and come away with a victory, Gian explained.
He highlighted the performance by Hudson Davis in the midfield role, saying, he’s “really been impressive as well.”
Gian noted that the Knights were a tough opponent and the way the Pirates were able to compete after traveling all day was impressive, especially having to come from behind to get the win.
“Really proud of the kids for that one,” he said.
The next day, on Sept. 14, the Pirates traveled to Manitou Springs, where they were able to come away with another victory, defeating the Manitou Springs Mustangs by a score of 1-0.
Gian explained that, similarly to the game against the Knights, the match against the Mustangs was physical and quick with both teams being aggressive toward the ball.
Gian also mentioned the Mustangs have a couple of impactful individual players and are a well-organized team.
The Pirates were forced to adjust their formation slightly in order to shut down one of the Mustangs’ top players, Gian explained.
He mentioned the Pirates shifted into more of a stopper-sweeper combination defensively so that Pham could man-mark the Mustangs’ main attacker throughout the match.
With the field being more narrow than a standard field, the Pirates wanted to shut down as much as they could through the middle from the Mustang’s attack, the coach indicated.
“I think we did pretty well to slow down some of that play through the middle,” Gian said, explaining he did not want to see the Pirates being forced to “overreact” when defending and work more on disrupting the attack and forcing the Mustangs to work around them.
The Pirates took the lead early in the first half and the game got a little more active from that point on, Gian explained.
He noted the Pirates “tried to settle in a little bit,” and “kind of weathered a storm,” with the Mustangs continuing to send balls in from the wider areas.
Gian commented on Pirate goalkeeper Christopher Young-Martinez’s performance, noting he had at least 10 saves on the day.
“Anytime he’s in there we feel pretty confident,” Gian said.
He explained it can be easy to forget about the importance of having a quality goalie like Young-Martinez and that at times he can be taken for granted.
Gian mentioned that Young-Martinez displayed great leadership and was “absolutely phenomenal” throughout the whole weekend.
Gian also mentioned the two wins against DSST: Montview and Manitou Springs were big for the Pirates going forward.
“I was very proud of ‘em,” Gian said.
On Sept. 17, the Pirates traveled to Crested Butte, falling to the Titans 1-0.
Despite the loss, Gian commented that the Pirates played well and improved keeping their shape in the midfield and defensively shutting off lanes.
“It was a great game, to be honest. We were in it the whole way,” Gian said, noting the Pirates created about five quality scoring opportunities.
“We’re bringing a lot of that heart, we’re bringing a lot of that fight. We’re letting people know who Pagosa is now,” Gian said.
Crested Butte is the defending 2A state champion.
Gian also mentioned the Pirates did a good job of keeping their shape through transitions and forced the Titans to beat them with quality play rather than chasing the game.
“We’re just building off each game,” Gian said, noting it was a well-fought match all around for the Pirates.
Gian also commented that the Pirates are getting settled in a little more with defining their player roles and formations.
He added the Pirates were able to develop “some really good build up play,” maintaining possession well at times and playing diagonal balls in behind the Titan’s back line.
Gian also commented that the Pirates could be more aggressive in getting to the ball first on set pieces and corner kicks.
“I wish we could’ve got a little more aggressive to the ball,” he said.
Gian mentioned that the game against Crested Butte was an all-around exceptional team effort by the Pirates.
“Everybody on the team really performed in their role exceptionally,” he said.
Gian commented that Ryder King and Davis in the midfield “played phenomenal,” along with noting performances by Pham, Carter, Deitemeyer and Young-Martinez.
Gian also mentioned the Pirates are becoming more effective as an overall team and relying less on individual efforts to carry them through games.
Additional stats for the games were not available as of press time Wednesday.
The Pirates are currently ranked eighth in the state’s 3A division, according to Colorado High School Athletic Association’s seeding index.
The Pirates have two more games coming up this week, starting with a league matchup against the Alamosa Mean Moose on Saturday, Sept. 21, at 11:30 a.m. at Golden Peaks Stadium.
Then, on Tuesday, Sept. 24, the Pirates will head over to Durango to take on the 4A Durango Demons.
Gian explained that the Pirates are looking to keep their momentum rolling and continue building their confidence going into games, with the attitude they can compete against any team.
“We know we can play with anybody,” he said.
clayton@pagosasun.com
