By Mike Weaver

The rocky road which the Montezuma-Cortez High School soccer team has traveled this season came to an end Tuesday, Oct. 19, at Panther Stadium.

In their season closer, the Panthers held Durango scoreless for a half of play, only the second Southwestern League team to do so during regular season play. But the Demons cashed in on their greater depth and power and rolled to a 5-0 win.

Cortez wrapped up its season with a 5-8-1 record. Undefeated Durango (14-0) will enter the preliminary round of the State Class 5A championship playoffs next week.

The Panthers took the field with a jury-rigged lineup. Four of their original starters were not with the team following a shakeup earlier in the season. However, Cortez still turned in a creditable performance Tuesday against a state-class powerhouse. Panther coach Jim Schulz was happy with his team’s final outing.

"I thought we battled well; I thought we still played really well the second half," he said. "They are a stronger team than us, but I think we battled them. The few goals they made, they just capitalized on little mistakes. That comes with us being a young team."

The Panthers spent most of the second half with their backs against the wall. Durango went to its deep bench and substituted freely while the Panthers, with a much shallower well to fall back on, ran out of gas when Durango put the pressure and kept it on.

Three minutes into the second half, the 0-0 deadlock was broken when the Demons’ Cy Rauworth kicked into the Cortez net from the middle. Durango scored again in the 54th minute, again down the middle. This time, Kyle Fredrick put the ball into the Panther goal. Cortez trailed 2-0.

Panther goalkeeper Joey Wynes, who had his work cut out for him all evening, had his chimes rung while charging the ball, and play was suspended for about five minutes while he shook the cob webs out. When play resumed, Durango kept the screws on. Following a near miss, Durango added to its lead when Zack Tripp broke out of the pack with the ball and booted it into the left side of the cage to make it a 3-0 lead with 15 minutes left to play. Another Demon goal from the left side with under five minutes left on the clock, this time by Kyle Arthur, put the Panthers down 4-0.

Adam Beach scored the final Durango tally in extra time with a kick up the middle.

No one could seize the advantage during the first half of play. Wyman was good for five saves during the first 40 minutes and several other Durango drives were blunted by tenacious defense. Demon near miss during the 38th minute ensured a tie at intermission.

Earlier, the Panthers dropped key games against other Southwestern League opponents. In a home game on Oct. 15, they were on the short end of a 6-0 trouncing by Grand Junction. It was a youth versus veteran affair which saw the Tigers take control and never let go of the wheel.

"Our intensity was just not there," Schulz said.