CB refuses to face depleted Lady ’Cats
Undermanned, but eager enough to begin 2A Intermountain-South play on their home pitch, the Ignacio Lady Bobcats ultimately had no opponent at high noon Saturday, March 30.
And though defending league champion Crested Butte Community School’s unwillingness to make the long trip south through the mountains if it meant playing anything less than 11-v-11 soccer could be, logistically speaking, considered understandable. Pressing IHS – which could still have had nine or ten Lady ’Cats in uniform – into forfeiting, rather than agree on an alternative time/place (even on neutral ground in, say, Montrose) in the near future, seemed presumptuous if not petty.
Granted, falling on their collective sword may have proved the least painful option for Ignacio, likely to have been bent over the blade by the red-hot Lady Titans – off to a 5-1 overall start, and standing 1-0 in league via a ‘home’ win in Gunnison over Telluride at Western Colorado University’s snow-free Katy O. Rady Field. But to first-year IHS skipper Tori Burch and her team, filled with new faces in 2024 after Commencement ’23 hit the program hard, any game action – even against an on-paper power – is valuable action, irreplaceable if lost.
As of press time Monday, April 1, there was no word on any reconciliation and/or possible reschedule date – leaving the Lady Bobcats standing 0-3 overall, 0-1 in league prior to their trip Thursday, April 4, to Del Norte. Blasted 8-0 at Bayfield (3-0, 1-0 3A Southwestern) on the 1st in a last-minute schedule add for BHS, the Lady Tigers stood 0-4, 0-1 prior to the 4:30 p.m. kickoff. Results were unavailable at press time.
After returning from the San Luis Valley, Ignacio will then travel westward on the 5th for a 2 p.m. start at Montezuma-Cortez (0-3, 0-1 3A Southwestern), then pause from play until hosting 3A Pagosa Springs on the 16th at 4:30 p.m. IHS’ journey to Crested Butte – the Lady Bobcats’ probable season finale – is presently set for Saturday, May 4, with kickoff targeted for 12 p.m.