A 36-minute game was coming down to its final seconds. So when Kit Carson’s Cindy Mays got a wide-open pass from her sister, Sara, only one thing was going through her mind.
“Don’t mess up,” Mays said. “No, seriously.”
And she didn’t. Mays nailed her shot off the backboard and sank a close-range bank shot with 10 seconds left to lead the upstart Wildcats to a 46-45 win over Caliche.
The nip-and-tuck fight between two up-and-coming heavyweights in 1A girls’ basketball came down to stifling defense, some key baskets and a little luck as Kit Carson (19-3) gets to enjoy another day in the state tournament from which it had been absent for 11 years.
“Our kids have worked so hard for this, and it’s just great to see them pull out a game like this one,” said Kit Carson head coach Sara Crawford, a Caliche High School graduate. “We’ve been preparing for this moment all year.”
The teams engaged in a pitched battle on the perimeter, with nine 3-pointers made between the teams.
Kit Carson advances to a state semifinal game today against North Park.
“This has been so cool for us,” Mays said. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
Senior center Melissa Jolly and junior guard Sabina Dawson combined for 26 points to lead the Wildcats.
Amy Marin led Caliche with 14 points but missed the front end of a one-and-one free-throw chance that would have put her team up by at least two points with nearly 20 seconds left in the game.
“We all came here with the hope of winning that gold ball, and losing like this is tough,” Caliche head coach David Huss said. “Still, we’re one of the best eight teams left in the state, and I hope our girls understand that.”
For Kit Carson, the recent success on the basketball court is an outcropping of successes earlier in the season. Kit Carson took home a state volleyball title this year.
Every member of the girls basketball team played on that volleyball squad.
“These girls have played in big games before, but it wasn’t on the basketball court,” Crawford said. “They’re showing me that they know how to win.”
Caliche 13 6 15 11 – 45
Kit Carson 13 8 14 11 – 46
Caliche -A. Marin 5 3-4 14, Morgan 3 2-2 10, M. Marin 3 1-2 7, Kippes 2 1-2 6, Stumpf 3 0-0 6, Stieb 1 0-0 2, Davison 0 0-0 0, Huss 0 0-0 0, Kielian 0 0-0 0, Koester 0 0-0 0, LeBlanc 0 0-0 0, Ring 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 7-10 45.
Kit Carson – 5 0-0 15, Jolly 6 1-4 13, McDonald 4 0-0 8, Ball 2 1-3 5, C. Mays 2 1-1 5, S. Mays 0 0-2 0, Baker 0 0-0 0, Medford 0 0-0 0, Rhoades 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 3-10 46.
3-pt. goals – Morgan 2, Kippes, A. Marin, Dawson 5. Total fouls – Caliche 14, Kit Carson 12. Fouled out – Jolly. Technicals – None.
HAXTUN 55, MERINO 41: Haxtun opened up an insurmountable lead early, and then beat back multiple mini-runs in the second half as the Bulldogs (20-4) beat Merino.
Merino fell behind 21-5 early but played virtually even basketball for the remainder of the game. Haxtun senior Kassie Kroeger led all scorers with 18 points.
Merino 5 12 10 14 – 41
Haxtun 18 9 12 16 – 55
Merino – Hendricks 4 4-9 12, Becker 3 0-0 7, Fritzler 2 3-4 7, Owens 2 3-7 7, Scalva 2 2-2 6, Shinpaugh 1 0-0 2, Coats 0 0-0 0, Cook 0 0-0 0, Hase 0 0-0 0, Hauer 0 0-0 0, Hooton 0 0-0 0, Imhof 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 12-22 41.
Haxtun – Kroeger 8 2-2 18, Dishman 4 7-8 16, D. Kipp 3 2-4 9, Green 1 3-4 5, Sayard 2 0-2 4, Widgery 1 0-0 2, L. Kipp 0 1-2 1, Evans 0 0-0 0, Kuehn 0 0-0 0, Nelson 0 0-0 0, Starkebaum 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 15-22 55.
3-pt. goals – Becker, Dishman, D. Kipp. Total fouls – Merino 16, Haxtun 20. Fouled out – Scalva. Technicals – None.
NORTH PARK 47, FLAGLER 40: Eighth-seeded Flagler nearly pulled off the upset of the tournament, hanging tough before falling to top-seeded North Park.
After entering the half tied at 22, North Park (22-1) opened up a six-point lead in the third quarter and never relinquished the advantage. North Park junior Kelsey Souza led all scorers with 19 points.
Flagler 12 10 7 11 – 40
North Park 12 10 13 12 – 47
Flagler – Witt 4 3-3 11, Fritzler 3 3-4 10, Cordell 3 1-2 7, Poet 1 3-4 5, Schifferns 2 0-0 5, Brouwer 1 0-0 2, Burns 0 0-0 0, Charles 0 0-0 0, Kinkel 0 0-0 0, Petty 0 0-0 0, Rand 0 0-0 0, Witt 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 10-13 40.
North Park – Souza 8 3-6 19, Corkle 3 10-12 16, Goulette 1 2-5 4, H. Rizor 2 0-0 4, Hanson 1 0-0 3, Nameth 0 1-4 1, Gollobith 0 0-0 0, D. Gonzales 0 0-0 0, R. Gonzales 0 0-0 0, Irvine 0 0-0 0, McNaney 0 0-0 0, K. Rizor 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 16-27 47.
3-pt. goals – Fritzler, Schifferns, Hanson. Total fouls – Flagler 21, North Park 11. Fouled out – Witt. Technicals – None.
EADS 50, LA VETA 36: Talli Hansen was a force, scoring 26 points mostly in the paint, as Eads (22-2) won its eighth game in a row.
Kyndall Alvarez led La Veta with 15 points in the losing effort.
Eads 14 14 9 13 – 50
La Veta 6 12 11 7 – 36
Eads – Glover 3 0-0 6, Buck 2 0-0 4, Barnett 1 4-7 6, Hansen 11 4-9 26, Saffer 4 0-2 8. Totals 21 8-18 50.
La Veta – Willhite 0 1-2 1, Moll 2 0-0 5, Burgach 1 1-1 3, Koutrik 1 1-4 3, Alvarez 5 4-6 15, Jameson 0 0-2 0, Morgan 4 0-0 9. Totals 13 7-15 36
3-pt. goals – Alvarez, Moll, Morgan.
SCHEDULE
THURSDAY
At Clune Arena, Air Force Academy
North Park 47, Flagler 40
Kit Carson 46, Caliche 45
Haxtun 55, Merino 41
Eads 50, La Veta 36
TODAY
Final Four: (3) Haxtun (20-4) vs. (2) Eads (22-2), 5 p.m.
(1) North Park (22-1) vs. (4) Kit Carson (21-3), 8 p.m.
SATURDAY
Third place: 1 p.m.
Championship: 4:15 p.m.
