GYPSUM (1/23/17) – The look on Tatum Peterson’s face after a 36-34 loss at Eagle Valley required no words. No matter how it happens, heartbreak hurts. Glenwood’s girls basketball team had its first lead of the game over one of the Western Slope’s best teams with just over a minute to play, then lost on a 3-pointer with 25 seconds to go. The boys exchanged the lead ten times before going into overtime, where they missed 11 of 12 shots and not only lost, 56-47, but fell out of first place in the WSL.
EAGLE VALLEY 36, GLENWOOD GIRLS 34
“Can you believe how many shots we missed?” Glenwood girls coach Rhonda Moser lamented after a game-long comeback finally saw the Demons grab their first lead with less than two minutes to play, only to have a 3-pointer dash upset hopes at Eagle Valley, 36-34.
Despite missing 40 of 51 shots in the game, the Lady Demons rallied from ten points down 2:30 before halftime to finally tie the score at 26 on Saylor Warren’s put-back two minutes into the fourth quarter.
With 3:51 left in the game, Glenwood took its first lead on two free throws by Peterson, 31-30, after Maddie Bolitho made the Demons’ only 3-pointerqaazzzzzzzaaa to draw them within one. Ximena Gutierrez, whose eight steals keyed a Demon defense that forced 32 Devil turnovers, made a pair from the line for a 3-point lead with 1:24 remaining.
Eagle, which had turned the ball over thirteen times against Glenwood’s press, finally broke it for a Kylie Martin layup. For the 5-10 Martin, who averages 18 points, it was only her 3rd basket of the game and first since the opening quarter.
Gutierrez got another steal with help from a trap by Maddie Bolitho and Dani DeCrow, and was fouled. The 5-7 sophomore Gutierrez, who had made just 33% of her free throws this season made the first of a one-and-one, but Peterson, looking for the offensive rebound, stepped into the lane too soon, wiping out the score and giving Eagle the ball with 40 seconds left.
Regan Bossow pulled the trigger on her second 3-pointer of the quarter with 25 seconds to go, regaining the lead for the Devils, 35-33. An offensive rebound by DeCrow led to another foul on Guiterrez, who made one, cutting the lead to a point, but Eagle’s Jessica Adams matched that from the line with 8 seconds remaining.
Following a time out with 4 seconds left, DeCrow’s 3-point try from the left wing hit the front of the rim, and Bolitho rebounded on the weak side. Her rushed layup missed and the Demons also missed a chance to move within a half-game of first-place Rifle and Palisade.
Peterson led all scorers with 11, making 7-of-8 free throws, but Eagle’s concentration on her limited the 6-1 junior to 2-of-11 from the floor. Gutierrez scored a season-high 9 points, and Warren added 6 points and 6 steals.
Martin had 10 points and 9 boards for Eagle and was held to 3-of-9 shooting. Bossow and Taylor Hermasillo each had 9 points and made 2-of-3 three-pointers. The Devils (9-5, 2-1) were 5-of-11 on treys, while Glenwood (7-9, 3-3) was just 1-of-8.
EAGLE VALLEY 56, GLENWOOD BOYS 47 (OVERTIME)
The Glenwood boys exchanged leads with the Devils nine times through the first two and a half quarters. The Demon defense seemed to take control with a 7-0 run featuring steals by Chano Gonzalez and Nic Isgrig leading to layups by Aaron Smith and Gonzalez for a 35-29 lead.
But the Devils scored the first five points of the 4th quarter, including a 3-pointer by Arturo Loera. Eagle tied the game on Garrett Martin’s 3-point play with 3:17 remaining, before going ahead on a put-back by Jesus Loera with 2:10 to go.
The Demons tied it on a coast-to-coast drive by Angel Garcia, his first points since scoring ten in the first half to help Glenwood take a 28-26 halftime lead. Eagle took the lead twice more in the final two minutes but baskets by Carlos Nolasco-Montes and AJ Crowley tied it each time.
Garcia had a three-point try for the win at the buzzer, but it fell short. The teams exchanged baskets in the first minute of the 4-minute overtime, but the Devils then scored 9 straight while Glenwood was missing its last six shots, including two blocks by Jesus Loera and three failed 3-pointers.
Garcia’s 12 points led the Demons with Smith, Gonzalez and Luke Gair each scoring 8. Martin scored 16 with 11 rebounds and 4 blocks for the Devils. Arturo Loera added 14 and Jesus 8.
The overtime win moved Eagle Valley (9-5, 2-1) past Glenwood (9-7, 4-2) into a first-place tie with Steamboat Springs (6-8, 2-1), which plays at Rifle (6-9, 3-2) tonight.
