After a strong start to the first quarter, the Durango High School girls basketball team looked like it was ready to upset Fruita Monument on the Demons’ senior night, but the home team’s offense couldn’t keep up with the Wildcats, resulting in a 55-34 loss.
The Demons turned over the Wildcats early in the game, resulting in a five-point lead in the middle of the first quarter. However, the Wildcats showed why they were on a six-game winning streak, moving the ball well to find open shooters and finishing the ball nicely inside.
Durango was forced to shoot a lot of outside shots against Fruita’s length and athleticism on defense, and the Demons’ primary creators were unsuccessful as the Wildcats had the game in hand by the end of the third quarter.
“We really emphasized how we wanted to start and take care of the ball because we struggled so much with turnovers last time we played them, especially in the first quarter,” Durango head coach Lauren Moran said. “We did that, we got stops defensively ... but there were too many possessions where they would score back-to-back times, and we couldn’t keep up.”
Durango dropped to 10-10 overall and 3-5 in the 6A/5A Southwestern League. The Demons were led by senior guard Claire Goodwin’s 14 points on 3-18 shooting from the field, 1-10 from 3-point range and 7-9 from the free-throw line. Junior guard Jaelyn Alston added 10 points.
Fruita improved to 14-7 overall and 7-1 in the 6A/5A Southwestern League. Freshman Alivia Hopkins led the Wildcats with 22 points.
Durango did a good job getting dribble drives into the paint and drawing fouls. The Demons also forced multiple turnovers in the first few minutes. A Goodwin drive and finish gave the Demons a 5-2 lead with 3:15 left.
Fruita ended the first quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 9-7 lead into the second. The Wildcats did a good job finding open 3-point shooters and getting offensive rebounds. Durango also had a few turnovers late.
“Hopkins is their leading scorer,” Moran said. “She’s a freshman, she has a great shot, and she missed three or four threes at the beginning of the game. We knew that she was not going to continue missing.”
The Wildcats continued their strong momentum into the second quarter. Fruita had some strong finishes inside. After airballing multiple 3-pointers in the first quarter, the Wildcats found their touch from outside. Fruita has a lot of lanky shooters who could easily shoot over the Demons, making it tough to defend.
On offense, the Demons resorted to launching desperation 3-pointers, as those driving lanes they had in the first quarter closed up. A late 3-pointer by Fruita gave the Wildcats a 28-12 lead at the half.
“We said at halftime that it seemed like we were overhelping on penetration a little bit ... we tried to correct that, but they’re just so strong all around, so it’s hard to limit all of the different options they have,” Moran said.
Fruita continued its strong offensive performance. The Wildcats moved the ball really well, capitalizing on Durango’s turnovers and misses by getting out in transition. Fruita found a lot of good looks inside and hit the occasional 3-pointer to keep the momentum going. Durango had a few nice scores, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with Fruita as the Wildcats led 43-21 after three quarters.
Moran got her bench into the game in the fourth quarter, and Goodwin got to the line against Fruita’s reserves. After the game, there was a nice senior-night ceremony for the team’s four seniors, Goodwin, Aysia Mathews, Ryne Neiman and Josie Phare, which included audio from the seniors and a highlight reel on the scoreboard as the seniors walked out with their families.
“What I'll remember most about this senior class is just the connection that they've built with each other,” Moran said. “They are a really close-knit group. Aysia and Claire have been best friends forever and so have Ryne and Josie. It's been really cool to see the four of them forming a close relationship.”
Durango stays at home to play Grand Junction at noon on Saturday.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
