Red Demons soccer gets first win since March 29
By: Shelton Burch
Dodge Globe Sports Editor
Five days after ending a four-game losing streak with a tie, the Dodge City Red Demons girls soccer team got themselves a win.
The Demons won for the first time since beating liberal 1-0 in overtime March 29.
The win moved them to 3-6-1 this season, beating Wichita Trinity Academy 2-0 Tuesday night.
“It’s a big relief” Red Demons head coach Saul Hernandez said.
Last Thursday, the Red Demons held Garden City scoreless to earn a draw.
“We’ve gotten some girls back that haven’t been available these last couple games and there was some difference makers in that,” Hernandez said. “We’re starting to do what we practice and they did (in) the second half what we didn’t do the first half. That was take shots, take shots with intent.”
The Red Demons had the wind at their back throughout the first half, but failed to get any real strong chances.
“The first half I felt like there were some shots that were too rushed because we had the wind to our back, and the second half we actually looked up where the goalkeeper was, and we looked for a spot,
and we connected it where we wanted it to,” Hernandez said.
With 26:49 left in the second half, sophomore Arleth Dozal scored, giving the Demons a 1-0 lead.
Hernandez said she did a good job getting the ball, getting around her defender, had a shot right away and didn’t give the goalkeeper the opportunity to settle into position.
“She did a great job picking her spot and executing,” Hernandez said.
With 9:05 left to play, senior Ariana Temblador gave the Red Demons some insurance, blasting home a free kick from about 35 yards out.
“Ariana’s been hungry for a goal,” Hernandez said.
“I played here a little bit up to. When I told her that she was gonna go up top, she said that she’s been waiting all season for that and I could tell from that that she was hungry.”
Five games remain in the Red Demons regular-season schedule.
“We’re wanting to finish strong,” Hernandez said. “In seasons past we’ve started strong and finished slow, but this season it’s been kind of the opposite. I’ve seen our momentum go up and our intensity go up as the season has gone along. It seems like the girls are enjoying their soccer more and hopefully we get that going into the postseason.
