The Pagosa Springs High School Pirate boys’ soccer team lost its season opener to the No. 1 5A squad in New Mexico on Thursday, Aug. 27, despite leading for three-quarters of the game.
The Pirates, who had a tournament in New Mexico canceled earlier this season, had to wait longer than they expected to step onto the pitch for the first time.
Piedra Vista was 3-0 coming into the game against Pagosa Springs and had only conceded one goal all season.
Coach Trevor Gian explained he was just excited that the team was going to get a chance to play together at game speed for the first time.
Gian’s main message to the team was to slow the game down early and to not get behind early, that’s exactly what they did, he noted.
“We came out fantastic,” Gian said. “I think the way we started the game, our approach to it was amazing.”
In the first 10 minutes of the game, the Pirates had a goal called back for offsides, but Gian indicated it showed the boys that they could get in behind the defense. Shortly after, Ryder King received a cross in the box and buried the ball in the back of the net to give the Pirates 1-0 lead.
The score stayed that way for the rest of the first half.
“We were kind of dictating the way we wanted to with our formation, with our plan going into that game, with our tactics, and [we were] definitely excited,” Gian said. “The way we started that game, obviously going 1-0 at halftime, I was extremely happy and proud of the team.”
In the second half, Piedra Vista started to wear down the Pirates, emphasized Gian, and in the final 20 minutes they scored three goals and won the game 3-1.
Gian explained he could tell that the boys were tired and that their fitness wasn’t all there yet.
Once Piedra Vista scored its first goal, the Pirates got out of formation and stopped executing, noted Gian, and the goal proved to be a big momentum swing.
Despite the loss, Gian remained positive.
“All around a great foundation for our season to start a game like that against that team,” he said. “Yeah, ... extremely excited about that.”
Gian highlighted the efforts of King on offense, Niilo Pietila and Hudson Davis in the middle of the field, and Ryder Davis and Oliver Samu on defense after the game.
Up next, The Pirates will face the Aztec Tigers from New Mexico, who are 0-1, on Saturday, Sept. 5, at home.
Aztec lost some players earlier this year and couldn’t field a varsity team. Their lone loss was a forfeit.
“They [are] probably going to be on the younger side and less experienced,” Gian said. “We’re hoping to get into that game and work on some of the stuff in the game situation that we want to work on in training. Kind of put it to practice there.”
Gian explained he wants his team to work on controlling the possession and adding in more build-up play against Aztec.
“I was very impressed with our team, with how they played, and excited for what we’ll be able to do going forward,” Gian said.
jsellner@orourkemediagroup.com
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