Thursday, December 01, 2011 By Lindsay Corzine, Staff Reporter
Hector Morales, senior, scores off penalty kick against Kent Denver. - Will Sardinsky
Basalt boy’s varsity soccer had a successful season this year to say the least. Once securing their league title, they moved on to the state finals after being placed as the number 6 seed out of 32 teams. Basalt became the only public school to make it to the quarter finals. Senior, Hector Morales won the 2011 3A Western Slope Player of the Year Award, and coach, Brent Hayes won 2011 Western Slope Coach of the Year. It was quite a year to remember for the Basalt Longhorns.
The boys kicked off their post season on Thursday, Oct. 27, with a home game against Telluride High School. The boys had almost an assured win with being placed number 6 seed, and Telluride being 27th. Although, placements do not always ensure a win, Basalt pulled away with a close 1-0 victory. Sean Ryan, junior, scored against Telluride goal keeper, Brendan Kelley, in the first half. Basalt continued to hold off the opposing team for the remaining time, to conclude in a shut out game.
The victory over Telluride left Basalt with a second home game, Saturday, Oct. 29, against the number 22 seed, Lutheran. With a previous close game, the boys knew they had to come ready to play in order to move on.
“We mentally focused for our opponents. It is easy to get carried away with all the attention and all the distractions but we held each other accountable and assured that we were ready to go,” said Hector Morales, senior captain.
Ten minutes into the game, Elmer Rodriguez, junior, scored the first goal. In less than five minutes from Rodriguez’s goal, Willy Salamanca, junior, made a shot giving Basalt a 2-0 advantage. Freshman, Stas Kjergaard, scored Lutheran’s first goal of the game, making the score 2-1 Basalt at half-time. Basalt gave Lutheran no chance for a run, with Hector Morales scoring shortly after beginning the second half. The Longhorns ensured their victory with a fourth goal by Josue Fernandez, junior, off of a corner kick.
With only eight teams left, Basalt traveled to Denver for their game on Thursday, Nov. 3, against the number 3 seed, Kent Denver, in the quarterfinals. Easily considered their hardest game yet, the Longhorns came out strong and stuck with Kent Denver for a 0-0 score at halftime. Three minutes into the second half, Kent Denver came away with the first goal of the game. Basalt put up a hard fight, and although all the players showed devotion and drive, Kent came out with three more goals to wrap up the half. With literally two seconds left in the game, Basalt was given a penalty kick, which was taken by Hector Morales. Morales shot into the upper left corner, and put it in. The goal ended the game, a 4-1 victory for Kent Denver. A dramatic loss marked the end of the season for the Longhorns.
The boy’s varsity team did not hang their heads on this last game. Their efforts and heart were noticed through out the season, and they fought hard until the very end. All the players could agree that this year was one to be proud of.
“I think our season went really great and I wouldn't regret any part of it,” said Adrian Lujan, freshman goal keeper.