On paper, the Montezuma-Cortez High School girls soccer team did not match up well against a Durango High School roster stocked with skilled and speedy players.
Playing with grit and determination however, the Lady Panthers managed to stay close to the Demons during a game in Cortez on April 28, which ended with a 2-1 Durango victory.
Throughout the first half of the contest, the Durango attack overwhelmed what looked to be an overmatched M-CHS defense, yet time and time again, the Demons were unable to score.
Durango finally broke through in the 22nd minute however, when Taylor Klone raced down the left side and received a pretty pass from Livi Curmano.
Moving towards the net with seemingly no angle to score, Klone chipped a perfect shot over the outstretched fingers of M-CHS goalkeeper Elisabeth Loshert to put Durango ahead 1-0.
Despite several near goals by Durango in the following minutes, the score remained 1-0 heading into halftime.
Opening the second half with a bang, Durango forward Lauren Milliet burst through the center of the Lady Panthers defense shortly after the kickoff and drilled a howitzer of a shot directly into the center of the net.
Milliet nearly scored her second goal of the game roughly 15-minutes later, but was denied by Loshert, who stuck her right hand out and deflected a point-blank shot just wide of the left goal post.
With approximately 10 minutes remaining in the first half, M-CHS scored its only goal of the game on a 30-yard free kick by Cassidy Leonard.
With the loss, M-CHS fell to 4-10-0 on the year, while Durango improved to 6-2-1.
The Lady Panthers played their final game of the season at home against Telluride on April 30.
