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Demons victorious in finale

Joelle MilholmPost Independent StaffGlenwood Springs, CO Colorado
Post Independent/Kelley Cox
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Glenwood’s got Steamboat’s number when it comes to Western Slope League finales.Last year, the Demon girls soccer team downed the Sailors 3-2 in the last WSL game of the year, sinking the Sailors hopes for an undefeated league record.This year, the underdog Demons beat them again. Chelsea Vallario scored two goals to give Glenwood a 2-1 victory on Tuesday at Stubler Memorial Field.”The second year that we’ve won our senior game against Steamboat, it feels awesome,” said Glenwood senior Corrina Gibbson.The win also rectified Glenwood’s loss to the Sailors in Steamboat in early April.

“Glenwood always plays very sharp and with a lot of intensity,” said Steamboat head coach Rob Bohlmann. “The spirit that they played with, I thought was night and day from when they were at our place. They fought hard and created enough opportunities to get it done.”The game figures to be the last home contest for Glenwood, which is guaranteed a spot in the postseason with a 10-3-1 WSL record. In the 32-team bracket, the Demons will most likely be on the road.”This is huge. We definitely wanted to do this for our seniors,” Vallario said about the nine Demon seniors on the team. “Our coach said this was by far the best going-away gift we could give them. Second year in a row, on our home field, it’s always a good feeling for us.”Steamboat (10-2-2 WSL) opened the game’s scoring with a goal 8 1/2 minutes in. Miranda Schrock hammered home the Sailor goal, the only to get past senior Demon keeper Anna Kulwiec.Steamboat held onto the lead, and the game’s momentum for the next 20 minutes. At the 9:49 mark, Glenwood senior Karlie Andreas was tripped in the box while making a charge toward the goal. The officials awarded Glenwood with a penalty kick and Vallario made it count with a roller to the left corner to tie the game.

Even though both teams had already clinched playoff spots coming into Tuesday’s contest, Glenwood proved they wanted to win. This was especially apparent in the second half as they outshot the Sailors 11-3 in the last 40 minutes, “Our play was just frantic, we tried to solve the problems,” Bohlmann said of his team which played its first game since returning from Steamboat’s way-later-than-everyone-else spring break. “We just couldn’t quite get there today.”The game-winning goal came almost six minutes into the half. Freshman Kendall Strautman brought the ball down the center of the field, but fell down when a Steamboat defender stole the ball from her. Luckily for the Demons, the ball squirted to the right and Vallario happened to get a foot on it. The junior launched the ball high up in the air, and as Sailor goalie Hanna Berglund drifted back, it carried over her head, bounced on the ground just passed the goal line and then up into the net.”I just stepped in with my left foot and kind of got lucky I guess,” Vallario said. Vallario had a few more chances in the game’s remaining 34-plus minutes, but couldn’t put the finishing touches on them.



When the final whistle blew, Glenwood’s bench cleared to celebrate.”This game was just about pride in our team,” said Glenwood head coach Linda Flohr. “We didn’t have to get this win, but we wanted it. It felt great. A good gift for our seniors.”With the win, Glenwood has now won eight of its last nine games and finishes No. 3 in the WSL behind Steamboat and league champ Battle Mountain.”Winning 10 games – that’s huge for us,” Flohr said. “We just did what you’re supposed to do and it just kind of increased as the season went.” Even though the Demons are done with their regular season, other teams around the state will finish up their schedules this week. Early next week, the Colorado High School Activities Association is expected to release the state bracket. Flohr’s hoping the win over Steamboat will help Glenwood get a better seed.”It’s a great momentum swing for us, hopefully the people who are looking will see that we’ve come on at the end of the season,” she said.


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