Drawing most of the headlines in girls’ basketball this week is the Thursday clash between Kit Carson and Limon as the Badgers are ranked #1 in Class 2A the Wildcats #2 in Class 1A. But of course, the main attraction is the chance for Kit Carson to match a state record. We look in-depth to that contest and several others in our small school games to watch.
CLASS 1A
Thursday – #2 Kit Carson vs #1 Limon (2A)
There is a #1 vs #2 in Class 3A set for later this week in Class 3A but this game should draw the most attention across the state. That’s because Kit Carson can tie the all-time mark for most consecutive wins with 78. McClave holds the current mark. The three-time champions are coming off three straight 25-0 season and also won their last two games in the 2015-16 after being upset in the state quarterfinals. Overall, they’re 123-2 over the past five seasons.
As they try to match the all-time mark, the Wildcats have two things working against them. First, they must replace four starters who stretched out to nearly 24-feet last year and second, the game is their season opener while Limon has already played twice. At this stage of the season, that’s a huge advantage. Should Kit Carson tied the record with a win on Thursday, they can set a new all-time record against Wiley on Friday. They also collide with Idalia on Saturday.
Senior Reyna Isenbart (7.7) is the key returnee for Kit Carson. She’s the lone senior on the squad and played major roles in all three past state championships. The rest of the roster is filled with talented players who have not played heavy minutes in tight games or post-season action. That list includes Cally Booker-Rady (2.5), Stephanie Framel (2.0), Tieler Randel (1.9) and Allison Gekeler (1.3).
Limon meantime is senior dominated with several players who are entering their fourth year of varsity basketball. They’ve already been tested this year. After blowing past Crowley County last Friday, they survived Ignacio on Saturday. The Badgers trailed Ignacio 40-37 after three quarters but outscored the Bobcats 20-4 over the final eight minutes.
Seniors Toni Lopez, Mahalie Owens and Sidney Hines all scored 11 points in the win. Three other seniors, Amy Weisensee (8), Elivia Hilferty (7) and Brooke Younger (3) combined for 18 points. Sophomore Trista Marx finished the scoring with six.
Friday – #7 Genoa Hugo vs Idalia
Both teams are looking to build on 1-1 efforts from last weekend. Genoa Hugo was upset by Lone Star in the first round of the Jeff Sherman Classic at Arickaree/Woodlin but responded to blow past the host Indian/Mustangs. Idalia took out DeBeque 52-42 in their season opener but then lost to #1 Briggsdale (65-43) in the finals of the Idalia tournament.
This game starts a brutal weekend for Idalia as they also face Kit Carson on Saturday. The Wolves ended up 11-13 last year but have nearly their entire roster back and it remains very young. Sophomores Kylie Wingfield and Camren Morris each netted 15 points in the win over DeBeque. A third sophomore, Cloey Jones, added 10 while junior Adrianna Herrera dropped in a dozen.
Ryely Smart netted 15 points but the rest of the team managed just 17 in the loss to Lone Star. She hit 6 of 13 shots and pulled down 14 rebounds. Overall, the Pirates struggled from outside the arc as they finished just 3 of 22.
Friday – #8 Springfield at Holly
A good rivalry in the Southeast corner as both teams have had plenty of success in the recent past. Springfield (1-1) finished second in their own tournament last week as they were knocked off by Hugoton KS in the finals. The Longhorns are a veteran group with seniors Julia Mondragon, Kylie Parks and Alexis Crane leading the way. They get help from underclassmen Brinlyn Dukes, Payton Arbuthnot Melanie Woller and Alayah Meltabarger.
Holly must replace leading scorers Kallie Cathcart (13.5) and Mercedes Rodriquez (11.5) from last year’s club but moved past Swallows Charter 52-29 in their season debut last week. They outscored the Pueblo based school 35-12 over the second and third quarters to take control.
Saturday – #1 Briggsdale vs Prairie (projected)
This game is not officially set as both clubs must win opening games at the Prairie Invitational first. Both are favored as the Falcons meet Shining Mountain and the Mustangs battle Arickaree/Woodlin.
Briggsdale bumped to number one this week after winning the Idalia tournament. Sophomore Kylie Krise poured in 43 combined points in wins over Twin Peaks Charter and Idalia. Junior Shelby Hoffman added 31 and freshman Peyton Nicklas 18.
Prairie is already 3-0 after beating Union Colony Prep (34-26), Caliche (52-28) and Otis (43-31) in week one. The last two victories gave them the Peetz tournament championship. They also face Wiggins on Tuesday before focusing on their own invitational.
CLASS 2A
Tuesday – #8 Rye at Trinidad (3A)
We had this game on our list initially and thought about pulling it off once the results came in late Tuesday. Rye easily won the game 48-12 but we left it on our list because both teams entered the contest unbeaten on the season. Trinidad was 3-0 and coming off a championship at the Trinidad State Invitational but they proved no match for the Thunderbolts. Rye opened an 11-4 lead after one quarter and then blanked the Miners in the second quarter while building a 23-4 halftime advantage.
The win pushed Rye to 4-0 on the season. Stats are not yet available but they entered the game with three double digit scorers in sophomore Sophie Adamson (15.3), Sydney Adamson (12.3) and Jolee Ortiz (11.3). Their defense was also outstanding as the Miners came into the contest averaging 54 points a game but they managed just 12 on Tuesday.
Rye is off until Friday when they take part in the Evangelical Christian tournament. They meet Fountain Valley on Friday and a win puts them up against either Cotopaxi or the host Eagles in the Saturday championship game. Trinidad has nine days off to regroup as they next face Raton NM on the 19th.
Friday – #2 Wray vs #4 Yuma (potential)
This rematch is not set in stone but could easily happen as both are on the same side of the bracket in the Goodland KS Topside Tournament. Wray meets Colby KS and Yuma faces McCook NE on Thursday and if both have the same result; they will meet in either the semifinals or consolation bracket on Friday.
The rivals have already met once as Wray took a 48-42 road win at Yuma las Saturday. The Eagles used solid offensive balance to post the win as Tabby Jones (12) was the lone player to reach double figures. Larissa Salmans added nine, Abby Shay eight, Morgan Jones seven and Karlie Godsey six in the early season win.
Saturday – #6 Merino at #6 Simla (2A)
Another cross-classification game of note in the smaller school ranks as both the Rams and Cubs are ranked sixth. Both clubs are 2-0. Merino downed Akron and Haxtun last week and allowed just 54 points in the process. Simla scored identical 51-31 wins over Evangelical Christian and Calhan in their first two outings.
The Cubs are coached this year by Doug Cox who has succeeded Al Snyder in Simla. The first-year boss has a nice mix of veteran leadership and newcomers on the roster. Junior Kaitlyn Rector picked up 30 points and 26 rebounds the two wins last week and senior Taylor Warnecke added 29 points and 16 boards. The freshman duo of Ryann Eurich (7.5) and Jillian Nipple (6.5) added 14 combined points a game in their first two games.
Senior Hannah Pejsa-Stagner tallied 32 points in the first two Merino wins. Taysa Conger added 22 points and 12 rebounds and Rylyn Nelson 20 points. All three are returning starters.
Weekend – La Junta Holiday Tournament (potential)
With three top 10 teams from either Class 2A or 3A in the bracket, several excellent matchups could take place over the three-day event. Del Norte is ranked third and Sanford fifth in Class 2A with Centauri checking in at #5 in Class 3A. Lamar is also in the field the Savages routinely spend time in the rankings as well.
Del Norte is favored to advance to the finals on the lower half of the bracket. They meet Monte Vista in the quarterfinals and a win there puts them up against either Swink or La Junta. Centauri battles Fowler in the opening round and a victory leaves them with either Sanford or Lamar on day two.
Despite each team sitting at 1-0, the matchup between Sanford-Lamar is the best matchup on Thursday. Each lost on the road to Alamosa in week one with Sanford falling 41-32 and Lamar coming up short 36-17.
