Lady Indians close regular season with win

GRAND JUNCTION — Tuesday could have been the last game ever for the Montrose High girls’ soccer team’s senior class.

But they had absolutely no intentions of letting that be the case.

Behind another stellar defensive effort, the Lady Indians were able to cap off their regular season with a 1-0 win over Grand Junction at Mesa State College.

Senior Autumn Trisch provided the winning goal with roughly 11 minutes remaining in the game, as she took a pass from sophomore Monica Thurston in front of the box and put it past the keeper into the corner of the net.

“It was a really well played game on both sides of the ball,” MHS head coach Mike Frazer said. “The defense was awesome. We were kind of getting pressed there in the first half, but after some halftime adjustments we settled in and clamped down on their offense.”

Junior keeper Katharine Bony led the way for Montrose’s defensive performance, as she recorded 15 saves in her fifth shutout of the season.

“Katharine had a just another amazing game,” Frazer said. “She bailed us out time, after time, after time. She’s really playing well right now.”

With the win, Montrose heads into the postseason with an overall record of 10-4-1 and 5-4-1 in the Southwestern League.

The victory was especially important because it moved the Lady Indians in front of Grand Junction (10-5, 5-5 SWL) in the conference standings to third place.

This should help MHS in its bid for a top-16 seed in next weekend’s state tournament, though official seeds won’t be known until Sunday.

If the Lady Indians don’t make the top 16, Frazer said he expects them to land just outside at No. 17 or 18.

Regardless, Montrose finds itself guaranteed a berth to the playoffs at the end of the regular season. From here, it’s a whole new season.

“We’d have been a little happier if we would have beaten Durango, but, you know, that’s just how it is,” Frazer said. “Our seniors stepped up and refused to give up. This was not going to be their last game tonight.”

Contact Robin Washut via e-mail at robinw@montrosepress.com