They say the Denver Coliseum is a tough place to shoot the basketball, but Fossil Ridge must have missed that memo.
The No. 8 Sabercats drained six threes in the opening half to build a lead they were able to hold on to down the stretch of Great 8 play, beating top-seeded Fruita Monument 58-52 to advance to their first Final Four since 2014.
Fossil Ridge burst out to a 12-0 lead midway through Friday’s first quarter, as Fruita Monument came out shooting the total opposite of the hot-handed Sabercats.
Wildcats coach Michael Wells burned a couple timeouts to get his team in rhythm, and Fruita Monument was able to cut into the deficit — but not before Sabercats senior guard Katey Guzman hit a step-back three to give them a 16-7 lead and the momentum heading into the second quarter.
The Southwestern League champions were down nine at halftime, but the scoring and ball handling of senior guards Riley Snyder and Mackenzie Wells sparked a third quarter Wildcats run, and by early fourth quarter the Sabercats’ lead was just five.
But senior guard Ashley Steffeck and the Sabercats, who had earned a trip back to the Coliseum after falling short in the Sweet 16 last year, played the final few minutes of the fourth like they didn’t want their stay on Humboldt Street to end quite yet.
Fossil Ridge (20-5) takes on No. 4 Grandview (23-3) on Thursday in the Final Four, while the Wildcats finish 23-3.
