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Durango High School senior soccer star Morgan Gurule signed a National Letter of Intent on Wednesday to play college soccer for Damian Clarke and the Fort Lewis College women’s soccer program, a team that finished 19-3-2 last year and 19th in the country. Gurule reunites with Clarke after playing for him from 11 to 15 years old at the club level in Durango.
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She has that ability to make the final pass that most kids can't make.
Morgan Gurule was born and raised in Durango. She grew up watching Fort Lewis College soccer.
Like so many Durango High School soccer players before her - Adam Beach, Nick Clark, the Fredrick brothers, Zane Wells, Lorin Anderson, Erika Shisler, Jessie Burdick-Davis, RJ Parke, Nick Hofman, Marc Morris - she dreamed of playing for her hometown school.
“I remember when I was growing up, they were so big and so fast," Gurule said. “I remember thinking, 'I want to be like that some day.'"
Gurule is like that.
With her senior season of DHS girls soccer yet to play, Gurule penned her National Letter of Intent on Wednesday to play for Fort Lewis College next fall.
Gurule will join DHS alumna Shisler, who will be a senior next fall, on the women's roster.
Wells followed fellow DHS alumni Beach, Clark and Kyle Fredrick with a Division II national championship last fall in his final year of eligibility.
Parke will be a sophomore, and Hofman and Morris will be redshirt freshmen on the men's roster.
“This is really special," DHS varsity girls soccer coach Aaron Eldridge said at the signing. “Morgan, Erika, Jessie, I've grown up with them since they were playing (Durango Parks and Recreation) club soccer for U10s, when I was first getting started as a trainer. It's always a pleasure to get them back (as a coach at the varsity level), and for them to continue on reflects the success of the soccer community in Durango."
The soccer community in Durango showed up in force for Gurule's signature party in a conference room at the high school.
Eldridge was there.
Former coach Mike LaVerghetta was there.
Club coach Kate Stahlin was there.
Former FLC women's soccer coach Jaymee Carozza was there.
Former DHS teammate Bekah Keil was there.
Former FLC goalkeeper Bree Baker was there.
Her mom, Marianne Hardy, was there.
Her dad, Lee Gurule, was there.
Her grandmothers, Linda Daley and Candie Gurule, were there.
At one point during the signing, there were 19 people tucked inside the suddenly-too-small DHS conference room.
And after sharing just one conversation with the thoughtful, soft-spoken teenager, you'll know why.
“Her attitude is impeccable," Eldridge said. “She works hard. She's positive. Anything you ask for, she'll do, and that's all you can ask for as a coach."
Gurule is as subtle on the field as she is off it. After a four-assist season last year, her play at center midfielder garnered All-Southwestern League Second Team recognition.
“She's so versatile, too," Eldridge said. “She's not limited to that position. I've played her out wide, and I think she could play up top, too. That's nice. The mark of a good player is versatility.
“She's smart, smooth and technical."
While playing for Stahlin in the Durango Youth Soccer Association this past summer season, Gurule fielded a couple of other college offers at tournaments as well.
One from California, one from Illinois, one from Kansas.
Gurule, however, had her mind made up.
“Being an only child, I really didn't want to leave my parents," she said.
Besides, she believes head coach Damian Clarke and FLC are the perfect fit.
“I really like him. I like his personality, the way he coaches," Gurule said of Clarke. “I think he can bring everything out in me. I think I can reach my full potential there, and enjoy it, too."
Clarke gushes about that potential, too.
“The more I think about Morgan, the more excited I get," said Clarke, who coached Gurule as an 11- to 15-year-old through DYSA.
“I've seen Morgan play. There was never a time that I doubted she'd play in college. She's always the most competitive kid in the group, but it's a quiet confidence. She's never flustered. She takes what she gets, but then she's also the kid that's going to prove to you she can do more than what you give her."
Gurule, a two-year starter on the varsity basketball team, has matured as an athlete in four years at DHS, and it's easy to realize her “full potential" has yet to be tapped. No matter the circumstances on the court or the pitch, she remains calm, collected and always in the moment.
“She's going to be a leader this year," Eldridge said of Gurule and their upcoming soccer season. “Just watching her on the basketball court … she makes me really proud."
Clarke, too, made mention of the two-sport star.
“She's such a good decision-maker, and I think that comes from being a dual-sport athlete" he said. “She has that ability to make the final pass that most kids can't make. That's probably her biggest asset."
Gurule attributed those older, bigger, faster, more experienced aforementioned players for that.
“Coming in as a freshman, those seniors were a lot bigger and stronger than me," she said. “I knew I had to get there. I had to work to get there. They gave me something to look up to. This was never a walk in the park; we competed with each other every day. But it was always fun, fun competition and a fun environment."
And now she's all grown up, big and fast just like them.
aaron@durangoherald.com