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Lions roar past Demons in 4th

DHS girls season comes to an end

The last quarter of the season got away from the Durango Demons.

Playing in the first round of the CHSAA Class 4A State Girls Basketball Championships at Pueblo West High School, the fourth-seeded Durango High School girls team found itself in a tough contest against Littleton, the fifth seed in the Tracy Hill Region of the bracket.

DHS trailed 29-28 at halftime and 42-40 going to the fourth quarter, and the Littleton Lions poured it on in the fourth quarter. A quick 6-0 run to open the final quarter gave Littleton (18-6) all the separation it needed before it took a 57-46 win.

DHS scored only six points in the fourth quarter after scoring at least 12 points in every previous quarter.

“We didn’t get good looks and didn’t get stops on the other end,” DHS head coach Tim Fitzpatrick said of the Demons’ fourth quarter. “We had some costly turnovers and not good looks.”

It was a sour end to a strong season for the Demons, who finished the year 16-9 after an 11-1 start that included a tournament win at the Pueblo County Holiday Tournament.

The Demons struggled at the beginning of Southwestern League play but found themselves again with two wins against rival Montrose in one week to end regular-season league play and the league tournament.

“I’m extremely proud of the kids. They’ve been great teammates to each other and a great team,” said Fitzpatrick, who completed his first season coaching the DHS girls. “They’ve been selfless all year, played for each other and embodied the team spirit. I’m most proud of them for doing that and working hard every day in practice and in every game.”

DHS fell one round short of matching last season’s playoff achievements, though CHSAA did change the format this year and cut the tournament field to 32 teams from 48 a season ago.

DHS senior Katie Wiegert went out on a strong note for the Demons. She scored 22 points against Littleton, though all of them came in the first three quarters.

“Not the way I wanted it to end,” Wiegert posted to Twitter shortly after the loss.

Sophomore guard Katrina Chandler added 10 points for DHS, and Stephanie Bayse scored six. Emily Fogel, another senior, scored four points for the Demons.

Chandler will lead a strong group of players returning to the team next season. DHS loses five seniors but will return three starters from this year’s team.

“I’m definitely excited about what’s ahead. The whole senior group was full of great leaders, and we’ll definitely miss them,” Fitzpatrick said. “Even when I was the boys coach, the motto was you win in the state tournament in the off-season. We’ll go to work.”

jlivingston@durangoherald.com



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