Preps roundup: Aspen girls lacrosse back on track

Olivia Porcaro scored four goals to help the Aspen girls lacrosse team top Eagle Valley, 10-4, and snap its two-game slide.

Kylie Davis scored twice and Mary Beasley, Allie Garrett, Delaney Conner and Nevada Crandall each chipped in with one goal for the Skiers, who improved to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in Mountain Conference play.

Goaltender Molly Kadota had 14 saves.

“The girls played really well – they’re coming into their own in terms of individual and team defense,” Aspen head coach Meredith Sauder said. “We were trying to work on some different things on the attack, and it started to come together. The girls were looking for each other, which is nice.”

Stephanie Alvarado scored twice and Tori Kungli pitched in with one goal, helping lead the Basalt girls soccer team to a 3-1, non-conference road victory over Battle Mountain on Thursday night.

“It was the best game of the season for us so far,” said Longhorns head coach Makenzie Eshelman, whose squad improved to 7-1. “We passed well and were efficient on offense. Everyone really played well tonight.”

Basalt was locked in a 1-1 game at the half, but some key adjustments proved to be the difference down the stretch.

“We started losing some steam there [at the end] of the first half. We made some personnel adjustments and talked about positioning,” Eshelman said. “We really came out firing after halftime.”

The Longhorns return to 3A Western Slope play Tuesday, when they host Coal Ridge at 4 p.m.

Taylor Mayer’s three-run home run pulled the Aspen baseball team to within two of Cedaredge in Game 1 of Thursday’s doubleheader. But the Skiers could not overcome an early five-run deficit, losing 7-5. Things got no better for the visitors in the second game, as the Bruins bats came to life and Aspen’s defensive woes resurfaced, resulting in a 14-4 Cedaredge win in a game shortened to five innings because of the mercy rule.

The Skiers now are 3-9.

Mayer and Rex Christensen had two hits apiece in the opener. Quinn Morehead pitched in with a RBI single and a steal of home, helping spark Aspen’s seventh-inning rally, which came up a few runs short.

“Man, that game really seemed like it was ours to be had,” Skiers head coach Nate Grinzinger said. “All the momentum was flying our way, we just didn’t close the deal.”

The Bruins seized control of Game 2 early with four runs in the first and three in both the second and third innings. They closed with three runs in the bottom of the fifth to hand Aspen its third loss in three days.

Because of Ex-Ed, the Skiers don’t return to the diamond until April 26, when they host Basalt in El Jebel.

“[This break] comes at the worst time possible,” Grinzinger said. “This is where we need time to turn this around, to start making things happen in a positive way.”