Top Performances from the 4A Sweet 16
The Class 4A state tournament began with a field of 64 teams. After three rounds of intense action, including an exciting slate of Sweet 16 games on Tuesday night, the field of title-chasers has now been whittled down to just…
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Continue ReadingThe Class 4A state tournament began with a field of 64 teams. After three rounds of intense action, including an exciting slate of Sweet 16 games on Tuesday night, the field of title-chasers has now been whittled down to just 16 remaining teams.
Let’s take a look at the players who stood out in the Sweet 16 and who’s moving on to the next round – the Great 8 – on Friday night.
[player_tooltip player_id="95130" first="Megan" last="Pohs"]Mullen’s Pohs, Perez coming alive at the right time
Some news out of the Mullen Mustangs’ most recent victory that might be frightening to the rest of the remaining 4A field: point guard Megan Pohs Megan Pohs 5'3" | PG Mullen | 2021 State CO is healthy and fellow sophomore Imani Perez Imani Perez 6'3" | PF Mullen | 2022 State CO is playing her best.
Now several games removed from a nagging hamstring injury, Pohs led Mullen to a 25-point victory against Montrose by scoring a game-high 24 points and doing her usual (when healthy) job of setting up her numerous talented teammates. Perez scored a modest eight points but the 6-foot-3 forward also led the Mustangs on a shot-blocking rampage throughout which they totaled an even dozen.
Also for the Mustangs, Alexa Dominguez Alexa Dominguez 5'8" | SF Mullen | 2021 State CO scored 13 points and Gracie Gallegos Gracie Gallegos 6'1" | SF Mullen | 2022 State CO finished with 10.
Team effort from Canon City leads to upset of No. 1 Sand Creek
The No. 16 Canon City Tigers shook up the 4A state tournament bracket in a big way on Tuesday night, winning 69-55 over No. 1 Sand Creek on the road. It took an all-around team effort led by seniors Jerika Moore Jerika Moore 5'7" | SG Canon City | 2020 State CO (Bethany College) and Kate Tedquist for the Tigers to pull off the upset.
Also in the game, Sand Creek senior Krystina Hagood Krystina Hagood 5'7" | SG Sand Creek | 2020 State CO passed 1,000 points for her prep career.
Simental, Cyclones pass big test in George Washington
[player_tooltip player_id="95017" first="Hannah" last="Simental"]The Pueblo West Cyclones got a huge third-quarter boost from bench player Marissa Leyva Marissa Leyva 5'7" | SG Pueblo West | 2021 State CO and a team-high 22 points from Hannah Simental Hannah Simental 5'8" | PG Pueblo West | 2020 State CO on Tuesday night to get past a very dangerous George Washington team that had its own sights set on the 4A crown.
It was exactly the type of balanced team effort, combined with a strong defensive showing, the Cyclones will need to replicate several more times if they hope to win it all this winter.
For George Washington, shooting guard Jaida Redwine Jaida Redwine 5'8" | PG George Washington | 2023 State CO led the team with 10 points and continues to make her case as the top freshman player in Colorado.
[player_tooltip player_id="116779" first="Alyssa" last="Wells"]Holy Family locks down Air Academy to reach the Great 8
It took a concerted team effort and a constant barrage of lanky, athletic defenders – which Holy Family has plenty of – but the Tigers held Air Academy to 27 points in a victory on Tuesday night that launched them into the Great 8.
Rotating different looks and defenders like Alyssa Wells Alyssa Wells 5'9" | SG Holy Family | 2021 State CO (11 points), Tyler Whitlock Tyler Whitlock 5'11" | SF Holy Family | 2021 State CO and Cecelia Aanerud, the Holy Family was able to hold University of Colorado-bound senior Kylee Blacksten Kylee Blacksten 6'3" | SG Air Academy | 2020 State CO to 13 points in the 42-27 win.
Berthoud’s Cavey, Fowler combo heating up at the right time
In a 58-42 win over Falcon in the Sweet 16, Berthoud senior Emily Cavey Emily Cavey 6'0" | SF Berthoud | 2020 State CO , who is having a big senior season after being limited by injuries the past couple of seasons, and junior Breanna Fowler Breanna Fowler 5'8" | PG Berthoud | 2021 State CO scored a combined 37 points.
Cavey scored 19 points, shooting 7 for 20 from the field, and also had eight rebounds, seven assists and nine steals. Fowler scored 18 on a 7-for-13 shooting effort. Together, the pair was 5 for 12 from 3-point range.
[player_tooltip player_id="95176" first="Deb" last="Altshuler"]Six players in double figures send Erie roaring into Great 8
The Erie Tigers are back in the Great 8 and Tuesday’s dominant 86-54 win over Glenwood Springs in which the Tigers scored 30 points in the first quarter and finished with six players scoring in double figures has them looking like a real threat in 4A.
Sophomores Deb Altshuler Deb Altshuler 5'8" | CG Erie | 2022 CO and Grace Moyers Grace Moyers 5'8" | CG Erie | 2022 CO led the Tigers with 18 points each, while Edie Morrow Edie Morrow 5'10" | SF Mead | 2022 State CO , another sophomore, scored 17. Junior Genevieve Gudino Genevieve Gudino 5'6" | CG Erie | 2021 State CO , who led the team with five assists, scored 11. Senior Alyssa Barnett and junior Anna Hefner Anna Hefner 5'11" | PF Erie | 2021 State CO had 10 apiece.
Hank gets to the line to help Green Mountain advance.
On Tuesday, Green Mountain won 58-45 over Durango and 5-foot-10 junior Courtney Hank Courtney Hank 5'10" | SF Green Mountain | 2021 State CO did much of the heavy lifting for the Rams. Hank poured in a season-high 23 points and did the bulk of her scoring at the free-throw line, where she went 15 for 18.
Howell’s double-double leads Sierra to victory
Chosen as the player of the game by head coach Joseph Williams, Sierra junior Jaide Howell led the Stallions into the Great 8 with a double-double against Thompson Valley. She finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Sierra senior D’nae Wilson D’nae Wilson 5'4" | PG Sierra | 2020 State CO led all scored with 16 points and Thompson Valley senior Sydnee Durtsche Sydnee Durtsche 5'10" | SF Thompson Valley | 2020 State CO posted a double-double of her own, finished with 13 points and 16 boards.