By Jim Thomas

The Bulldogs and the Panthers kissed Friday afternoon in Southwest League boys soccer action Friday afternoon, Oct. 8, at Norman Johnson Memorial Field. Montezuma-Cortez High School and Palisade High tied 2-2, thanks to a penalty kick in the last few seconds of regular play.

With just under a minute left to play, Devon Robb was pushed with an elbow by a Palisade player. Robb calmly sent the ball into the corner of the net which tied the score at 2-2. Neither team could score in the first or second overtime periods.

In the first overtime, Cortez goalie Joey Wynes made a diving save. Palisade had another attempt on goal a few seconds later but it went wide of the mark. Robb shot from long distance but could not connect. Palisade made another shot, but Wynes stopped it.

In the second overtime, Cortez was having problems passing the ball. A Bulldog made a steal and shot but it was wide. Wynes made another save. The Panthers finally got a shot off, but it was way wide.

The Panthers scored at the 12:22 mark in the first half after Palisade had dominated up until that point. But Jeff Yarbrough celebrated his 16th birthday with a goal. But Palisade was quick to answer. Mark Widegren scored on a breakaway at the 20-minute mark for a 1-1 game.

The Panthers had a several opportunities to score but could not get the ball into the net. Likewise, the Bulldogs also had a few shots on goal but nothing would go in.

In the second half, Cortez pressed and was able to get several shots off. Palisade came back and made some shots, but Wynes stayed strong in the crease. Palisade dominated and barely missed on a header at 5:17. Wynes blocked several other shots and dived after another. But Widegren scored again at the 20-minute mark to put the Bulldogs up 2-1. That’s when the Panthers settled down and shot, and shot, and shot at goal until Robb’s tying shot found the net.

With all the Homecoming activities it was hard to stay focused.

The Panthers fell to the Indians 3-0 back on Sept. 25 despite playing a good game. They were scheduled to play Palisade Friday afternoon, a team they lost 1-2 to on Sept. 17.

It certainly wasn’t a game to write home about.

The Panther boys soccer team, 5-5 overall and 3-3 in Southwest League, was routed by a very good Demon team 7-0 Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 5, at Riverview Field in Durango. The Demons improved to 10-0 overall and 8-0.

The Demons scored two goals within the first five minutes and led 4-0 at the half. Kyle Fredrick booted in the ball following a cross early. Then a couple minutes later Bobby Zahradnik scored off a penalty kick. They added another score when Travis Bates scored off an assist from Fredrick, who scored himself just before the half.

It was all the Demons in the second half. Bates, Kyle Arthur and Tyler Denham all scored for Durango, now a Class 5A team.