Arvada West girls basketball completes sweep of Ralston Valley

ARVADA — For the first time in over a decade Arvada West’s girls basketball team has hit the 20-win mark, but the Wildcats aren’t done yet.

“It feels amazing, but we still have work to do,” A-West senior Sara Walker said after the Wildcats’ regular-season finale win Saturday night. “Our goal is to get to the Coliseum (state quarterfinals). These next two (playoff) games are going to be big.”

A-West picked up its 20th victory at home with a 50-45 victory over rival Ralston Valley. It was the Class 6A Jeffco League and regular-season finale for both the Wildcats (20-3, 10-2 in league) and Mustangs (12-11, 5-7).

“It means a lot. I think this program proved itself tonight,” Walker said after the Wildcats swept rival Ralston Valley in both conference meetings and picked up a 20-win season since 2011-12. “People thought the last win was just an off night for RV.”

Walker had anything but an off night. The senior poured a team-high 16 points while playing her normal tough defense and hitting the boards. Walker even made her second 3-pointer of the season on a step-back from long range in the fourth quarter that gave the Wildcats a 40-35 lead with 6 minutes to play.

“Everyone has a role on this team,” said Walker, who hit double-digit points for only the sixth time this season. “If you can do a little bit more and step out of your comfort zone you should. I did that a little bit today.”

Ralston Valley did fight in the second half trying to avoid a 4-game losing streak heading into the postseason. Sophomore Santana Sabus caught fire in the second half pouring in 18 points after halftime to finish with a game-high 19 points in the loss.

With the game being the first game of a girls/boys varsity doubleheader, it was nearly a standing-room only crowd during the second half of the girls’ game.

“I’m proud of all the kids. Playing in this environment and it gets a little dicey there when the other team goes on a run,” A-West coach Brady Meeks said about Ralston Valley tying the game up at 33-33 late in the third quarter. “You hope they show some composure and I think we’ve shown a lot of grit this year. Hopefully that will come in handy in the playoffs.”

Seniors Avery Harrison (9 points) and Saylor Swanson (8 points) both had a strong second half to keep the Mustangs from making a successful comeback attempt. Harrison had a big 3-pointer that extended A-West’s lead to 45-35 with 5:30 left to play.

Junior Santana Pena, sophomore Macie Ferguson and Walker combined to go 5-for-8 from the free-throw line in the final quarter to allow the Wildcats to win their fifth straight heading into the 40-team 6A state tournament next week.

“We wanted it more,” Walker said of the Wildcats closing out the victory.

A-West was sitting at No. 9 in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index as of late Saturday night. The official brackets will be released Sunday by CHSAA. The Wildcats will get a first-round bye and host a second-round game Saturday, March 1.

“It is brutal,” Meeks said of the 6A state tournament. “I’ve seen some of the teams that might be coming in here (second-round opponents) and I feel like there are a lot of teams that can beat each other. You obviously have those top teams, then the rest of us are just scrapping against each other. It is going to come down to who is making shots that day.”

Ralston Valley was No. 22 in the seeding index. The Mustangs will also avoid a first-round game, but will be on the round in the second round next Saturday.