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Ignacio junior Juliann Avila (23) attempts a shot between two Pagosa Springs defenders during 3A/4A Intermountain League play Saturday afternoon, Jan. 18, inside IHS Gymnasium. The 3A Lady Bobcats fell 51-22 to the 4A Lady Pirates.
Ignacio senior Marissa Olguin tries stealing the ball away from Pagosa Springs’ Kylie Ketchum (5) during 3A/4A Intermountain League play Saturday afternoon, Jan. 18, inside IHS Gymnasium. The 3A Lady Bobcats fell 51-22 to the 4A Lady Pirates.
Ignacio junior Alyssa Atencio (2) tries passing out of a sideline trap applied by Pagosa Springs’ Lexi Campbell (10) and Karsyn Shahan (23) during 3A/4A Intermountain League play Saturday afternoon, Jan. 18, inside IHS Gymnasium. The 3A Lady Bobcats fell 51-22 to the 4A Lady Pirates.
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to the Drum
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to the Drum
Photo Credit: Joel Priest | Special to the Drum
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Lady ’Cats lose IML opener at home


PSHS too much for illness-affected IHS

With a much-discussed ‘polar vortex’ weather system already blasting Colorado’s northern Front Range and Eastern Plains regions and continuing to push farther south Saturday afternoon, Jan. 18, one could say that ol’ Jack Frost – apparently having not made his presence fully known during the holiday break – was indeed nipping at pretty much everyone’s nose.

When it came to Ignacio’s Lady Bobcats, however, the fictitious Arctic enthusiast may as well have been stabbing them in the back – considering the state the squad found itself in prior to beginning 3A/4A Intermountain League work against senior-led Pagosa Springs.

“I didn’t know how they were going to be in the first place, being sick and trying to breathe … got those burning lungs,” said head coach Travis Nanaeto, also not immune – proverbially and/or literally – from illness but unwilling to not guide his team. “And they worked great, for being really sick-sick. They hustled; that’s all I asked for, you know?”

And especially on defense, they had to – what with the 4A Lady Pirates able to rapidly reverse the flow of an offensive play via lengthy skip passes to the opposite side of floor, then immediately reverse it back again if necessary, stretching 3A IHS’ defense to its physical limits and often beyond.

But through the first quarter of action inside IHS Gymnasium, the Lady ’Cats managed to not break; after PSHS raced out to a threatening 7-0 lead, IHS got going with a three-pointer by junior guard Alyssa Atencio, and closed out the quarter trailing by just a point, 7-6. Pagosa Springs junior Amber Snarr started the second stanza sinking a three, but after Ignacio clawed back to 13-11 via a trey by senior Marissa Olguin, the Lady Pirates struck back mere moments later with a three courtesy senior Karsyn Shahan, and just 1:52 left until halftime.

As it turned out, Shahan’s make sparked what ended up being a game-altering 10-0 run uninterrupted until Olguin made a free throw with 6:17 left in the third quarter. But Pagosa Springs then outscored IHS 11-4 and went into the fourth quarter up 34-16 after junior Kaila Limebrook hit one of two FTs after being fouled by senior Addison Kremer with 0:00.1 left.

Limebrook would then log four points during the final frame and senior Elizabeth Currier five as each finished with 12 points in what ended up being a 51-22 road win. Senior Kylie Ketchum scored seven points and Snarr totaled four as the Lady Pirates (7-4 overall, 2-0 IML) successfully followed up their 42-26 win at Monte Vista (4-4, 0-1) the previous evening.

“We had been talking a lot about … ball movement. A couple games back and forth, we weren’t running a (offensive) set all the way through and not making sharp passes. And I think the last two games we’ve finally started connecting on that, and that’s nice to see,” PSHS head coach Sarah Osborn said. “We got lots of open shots that didn’t quite fall, but we were getting all the looks we wanted.”

“I liked seeing eight in the (score)book,” she continued. “We have a really tough league – I think anybody can sneak a win on any given night – but when you have three or four girls all above or close to ten (points), that’s pretty tough to guard.”

Olguin finished with six points for Ignacio (4-7, 0-1 IML), senior DaLaney Wesner booked her half-dozen during the second half, and despite making just two of six FTs, Atencio ended up with five points. Senior Victoria Brown managed three points but like Wesner was slowed by four personal fouls, and Kremer chipped in her two points during the fourth quarter.

Dealt a fifth straight defeat after losing 56-17 on the 14th at 2A Sargent, Ignacio will re-visit the San Luis Valley on the 24th to face Centauri (10-2, 2-0 IML) in La Jara, then welcome Montezuma-Cortez on the 28th. Results from the Lady Bobcats’ 1/23 trip to Bayfield – slain 72-7 on the 18th at CHS – were unavailable at press time.

“We’re going to work on more plays and stuff,” said Nanaeto, “and being patient with the ball … don’t rush our shots.”

Prior to hosting IHS, the Lady Wolverines (4-6, 0-2) were to face 2A Mancos (2-8, 2-2 3A/2A/1A San Juan Basin) in non-league play Tuesday evening, Jan. 21, with the outcome also unknown at press time.

STATS FROM SARGENT

In the aforementioned loss at SHS, Atencio totaled six points, Brown and Wesner each scored four and sophomore reserve Aubre Lucero three. Sophomores Kandace (18 points) and Kimmy (9 points) Pargin powered the Lady Farmers – now 7-2 overall after a 78-37 rout on the 16th of 1A La Veta – to victory, with junior Angelise Garcia contributing 11 points, sophomore Makenzie Consaul eight, sophomore Tami Torgler six and junior Reese Anderson four.

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