Eagle Valley notches late goal to defeat Glenwood Springs for second-straight win
Addison Mandeville scored with three minutes remaining in the game to seal the 1-0 victory
Ryan Sederquist/Vail Daily
Addison Mandeville scored with three minutes to go to lead Eagle Valley to a 1-0 road victory over Glenwood Springs on Tuesday.
“It was a nail-biter for sure,” head coach Jess Platt said after her team’s second-straight win. “They kept us on our toes and gave a good fight.”
Glenwood Springs 鈥� which lost to Eagle Valley 7-0 in Gypsum on March 14 鈥� took advantage of its narrow, grass home pitch to keep things 0-0 for most of the game.
“We did our best to prepare for that, but they play really well on their home field,” Platt said. “Kudos to them. They really showed up and made it a great competition.”
The Devils started to press late in the second half.
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“We got a lot more opportunities that we just couldn’t capitalize on,” Platt said. “The clock was ticking and Addie showed up.”
Mandeville came across the penalty area and almost got inside the six-yard box before sneaking a grounder by the Glenwood Springs goalie to the far corner.
“It was a nice looking shot,” Platt said. “As many of hers are.”
The Devils improved to 6-4-2 on the season and 5-2-1 in league play with the victory.
“It was good to come away with a win,” Platt continued. “We’re keeping our head down and trying to take each game one at a time as we look forward to maybe a possible post-season.”
The 14 league champions in 4A earn automatic spots in the 32-team state tournament, with the next best 18 teams in the Selection & Seeding Index filling the bracket. with three regular season games remaining, Eagle Valle is right on the
“Kind of a big deal for the girls. If we can stay above the fold and be in that 32 and above spot, that’s going to be our best shot,” Platt said.
“Some of it depends on our performance and we have to see how everybody else does as well. I think we lost a little momentum playing Palisade, but the win against Battle Mountain coming off of that was good for us.”
The Devils trail No. 13 Palisade (8-1-1 overall, 5-1-1 league) in the 4A Western Slope. After next week’s spring break, Eagle Valley closes out the season against Roaring Fork on April 29, Battle Mountain on April 30 and Summit on May 2.
Considering nine senior starters graduated from last year’s squad 鈥� and several rising seniors left for other spring sports 鈥� Platt is pleased with the her team’s performance.
“I think anyone who was looking at our team on paper coming into this season was thinking you know, this was going to be a year where we’re building back our program,” she said. “These kids showed up ready to go and we’re having a really good, successful time.”
The coach has been impressed with her young squad’s resiliency, particularly as they navigate the pressures of fighting for a playoff spot.
“It’s not a position any of these kids have been in before (but) it hasn’t really affected our chemistry,” she said. “They love each other and they love playing soccer and it’s just working out for us. It’s just been super fun.”
