Fort Collins – Matt Baarts’ knee-high socks read “In Loving Memory R.J.B.”
It was 16 years ago that Baarts lost his 6-month-old brother, Ryan Joseph, who was born with a hole in his heart. On Thursday afternoon at Moby Arena in the Great 8 of the Class 3A boys basketball tournament, Baarts paid tribute with a 19-point, nine-rebound performance in Colorado Springs Christian’s 59-38 victory over Rye.
“We were ready for them,” said Baarts of the Thunderbolts, also of the Tri-Peaks League. “We’ve been waiting for a while.”
C.S. Christian (24-1) shook off the state jitters, taking an 8-7 lead after the first quarter. The 6-foot-6 duo of Baarts and Taylor Broekhuis gave Rye fits on the defensive end, forcing eight turnovers, contesting and altering every T-bolts shot and blocking four more.
“Taylor and Matt have really risen to the occasion defensively all year,” Lions coach Alan Karg said.
C.S. Christian’s guards, Mike Shugart and Jake Selley, were the beneficiaries on offense during a 17-6 run to close out a second quarter that put the Lions up 27-17 at the half.
Rye (21-4) never found any rhythm on offense and made just 5-of-33 shots in the second half. Leading scorer Morgan Minck was just 4-for-16 from the field as the Thunderbolts shot 17.5 percent (11-of-63) for the game.
“We needed to play a consistent 32 minutes to beat this team,” said Rye coach Jim Hale, whose team was playing its first season in Class 3A after moving up from 2A. “C.S. Christian is a great ballclub, and we knew that coming in.”
C.S. Christian, which will play Kent Denver tonight at 7 p.m., got nine points from Selley. Broekhuis finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots.
The Lions beat the Sun Devils 63-48 in Colorado Springs in December.
Rye 7 10 7 14 – 38
C.S. Christian 8 19 16 16 – 59
Rye – Hinson 3 2-3 9, Harrison 1 3-3 5, Branom 1 0-0 3, Davis 1 1-2 3, Minck 4 6-8 14, Vidick 0 0-0 0, Carter 0 0-0 0, Minjarez 0 0-0 0, Rochester 0 2-2 2, Reeves 0 0-0 0, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Lewis 1 0-0 2. Totals 11 14-18 36.
C.S. Christian – Mellema 2 2-2 6, Shugart 5 0-1 11, Selley 4 1-1 9, Broekhuis 3 4-5 10, Baarts 9 1-1 19, Veltkamp 0 0-0 0, Mohnssen 0 0-0 0, Smith 1 2-2 4, Collura 0 0-0 0, Winters 0 0-0 0, Kiemel 0 0-0 0, Van Cura 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 10-12 59.
3-pt. goals – Hinson, Branom; Shugart. Total fouls – Rye 11; C.S. Christian 15. Fouled out – None. Technicals – None.
FAITH CHRISTIAN 71, ROOSEVELT 40: The top-seeded and unbeaten Eagles used a 9-0 run in the first quarter and an 11-0 streak to start the second quarter to pull away and advance to the semifinals.
The Eagles (25-0) had four players in double figures, led by Jobi Wall’s 15 points. The 6-foot-5 junior also pulled down 10 rebounds. Senior Graham Yantis, playing with an injured left hand, was a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor and had 12 points. Abram Ziemer and Vince Colson each had 10 points.
Jerry Hildreth was just 5-for-16 from the field and finished with a team-high 12 points for Roosevelt (14-12).
Roosevelt 11 10 10 9 – 40
Faith Christian 18 21 13 19 – 71
Roosevelt – Arispe 3 0-0 7, Hildreth 5 0-0 12, Garcia 1 0-0 2, Wilson 3 0-0 6, Elning 1 0-1 2, Holguin 1 1-1 3, Cooper 0 0-0 0, Predmore 0 0-0 0, Valverde 0 0-0 0, Hernandez 3 2-2 8, Castillo 0 0-1 0. Totals 17 3-4 40.
Faith Christian – Wall 5 4-6 15, Ziemer 4 0-0 10, Kirkwood 2 0-0 4, Colson 3 4-4 10, Gill 3 0-0 6, Hegarty 1 0-2 2, Coon 0 0-0 0, Chapman 1 0-0 2, Grabau 3 0-0 7, Yantis 5 2-2 12, McBeth 0 0-0 0, Yeager 1 1-2 3. Totals 28 11-16 71.
3-pt. goals – Hildreth 2, Arispe; Ziemer 2, Wall, Grabau. Total fouls – Roosevelt 11; Faith Christian 13. Fouled out – None. Technicals – None.
KENT DENVER 63, ROARING FORK 49: Kyle Lewis, the University of Denver-bound senior from Kent Denver, hit a hot streak en route to a game-high 36 points.
Lewis, who had been suffering from a strained neck, hit eight 3-pointers.
Kent Denver (19-6) played very well on defense, especially on Rams big man Torrey Udall. The 6-foot-7 junior was just 4-for-16 from the field.
Roaring Fork (23-2), which suffered its first loss to a Class 3A team, got 14 points from Udall and 11 from Kade Giannetti.
Kent Denver 10 18 22 13 – 63
Roaring Fork 10 9 11 19 – 49
Kent Denver – Reilly 3 1-2 7, Lewis 12 4-4 36, Deevy 3 0-0 8, Wiebe 1 2-3 4, Stewart 4 0-0 8, Kraus 0 0-0 0, Ely 0 0-0 0, Dunlap 0 0-0 0, Holz 0 0-0 0, Kenney 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 7-9 63.
Roaring Fork – Giannetti 4 3-4 11, Tr. Hunt 4 0-0 9, Raaflaub 3 1-3 7, Ty. Hunt 2 2-2 8, Udall 4 6-7 14, Hernandez 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 12-16 49.
3-pt. goals – Lewis 8, Deevy 2; Ty. Hunt 2, Tr. Hunt. Total fouls – Kent Denver 13; Roaring Fork 15. Fouled out – None. Technicals – None.
EATON 51, PAGOSA SPRINGS 46: Eaton (22-3) outscored Pagosa Springs 21-14 in the final quarter to cap its comeback.
Just four Reds scored, led by sophomore Seth Lobato’s 16 points. Pagosa Springs (19-4) was led by James Martinez’s 15 points.
Pagosa Springs 15 9 8 14 – 46
Eaton 14 5 11 21 – 51
Pagosa Springs – J. Shaffer 5 0-0 11, Hilsabeck 4 1-2 10, Trujillo 0 0-0 0, Ormonde 4 0-2 8, Martinez 6 2-3 15, Richie 0 0-0 0, Hart 0 0-0 0, Ross 1 0-0 2. Totals 20 3-7 46.
Eaton – Korell 5 0-1 12, Geisick 2 5-6 10, Smith 6 1-4 13, Ball 0 0-0 0, Lobato 6 4-5 16, Stewart 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 10-16 51.
3-pt. goals – J. Shaffer, Hilsabeck, Martinez; Korell 2, Geisick. Total fouls – Pagosa Springs 15; Eaton 12. Fouled out – None. Technicals – None.
Jon E. Yunt can be reached at 303-954-1354 or jyunt@denverpost.com.
SCHEDULE
THURSDAY
At Moby Arena, Fort Collins
Faith Christian 71, Roosevelt 40
Eaton 51, Pagosa Springs 46
C.S. Christian 59, Rye 38
Kent Denver 63, Roaring Fork 49
TODAY
Final Four: (1) Faith Christian (25-0) vs. (1) Eaton (22-3), 4 p.m.
(1) C.S. Christian (24-1) vs. (3) Kent Denver (19-6), 7 p.m.
SATURDAY
Third place: 2 p.m.
Championship game: 5:15 p.m.
