Stopping a late-season losing streak at four games, Ignacio’s boys basketball team kept its postseason hopes alive Tuesday night by blasting Alamosa 53-31 inside IHS Gymnasium.
Ignacio improved to 9-12 overall, 2-9 in 3A/4A Intermountain League play; the 4A Mean Moose dipped to 8-14, 3-8 as IHS honored senior regulars Trace Crane, Sonny Flores, Rance Rathjen and Stoney White Thunder-Lucero, plus reserve Zaine Velasquez-Hight properly by winning the group’s last-ever home game.
Individual numbers had not been reported as of press time.
Still needing as much help as possible to climb into the top 32 in CHSAA’s Class 3A Selection & Seeding Index, head coach Trae Seibel’s Bobcats stood No. 36 early on Thursday, mere hours away from that night’s must-win regular-season finale at Monte Vista. Jaime Hurtado’s Pirates (11-10, 4-7 IML), meanwhile, checked in that morning at No. 26 after losing 75-52 on Tuesday at 4A No. 2 Montezuma-Cortez (22-0, 11-0).
Elsewhere around the league, Bayfield (13-8, 5-5) was at No. 20 in the Index prior to a slated Friday trip to M-CHS and a 2/28 regular-season finale at home versus 4A Pagosa Springs (11-10, 8-3). Tipoff at Montezuma-Cortez is scheduled for 7 p.m.; the Saturday start against PSHS is set for 4 p.m.
BOBCAT GIRLS CAN’T UPSET AHS: Dealt their third consecutive defeat, Ignacio’s girls basketball squad gave Alamosa, at the time ranked No. 8 in Class 4A, a good run but came up short in a 42-27 home loss.
Playing her final game inside IHS Gymnasium, senior guard Alyssa Atencio scored six points via 6-of-12 free-throw shooting. Senior forward Juliann Avila also scored six points, but all before halftime – which began with Travis Nanaeto’s Bobcats (4-17 overall, 2-9 3A/4A Intermountain) actually leading AHS 22-21.
In the third quarter, however, the home team cooled and Alamosa, led by senior Aubrey Rothermich’s 3-pointer and five total points, outscored IHS 14-3 and thus took a 35-25 advantage into the final frame – in which two Atencio FTs were all Ignacio could muster offensively.
Freshman forward Justina Jessepe (1-4 FT) ended up sinking two threes and tallied a team-best seven points for the Bobcats
AHS senior Jaelin Garcia made nine FTs out of 14 attempted and totaled a game-high 13 points. Rested for much of the fourth quarter, Rothermich ended up with nine points.
Sophomore Leela Gutierrez and freshman Ashlyn Rice contributed six points apiece, and sophomore Kamryn Moeller (1-2 FT) one as AHS, winner of six straight since a 35-32 setback on the 3rd at Monte Vista, improved to 16-5 overall, 9-2 IML.
Standing No. 37 in the 3A Girls Selection & Seeding Index on Thursday morning, the Cats were to conclude regular-season work that evening at No. 20 MVHS (11-10, 5-6), needing a victory and heaps of help to move up in the Index.
Bayfield (3-18, 0-10), meanwhile, checked in at No. 46 before traveling on Friday to 4A Montezuma-Cortez (10-12, 4-7) and hosting 4A Pagosa Springs (12-9, 8-3) the next afternoon. Tipoff for the Wolverines at M-CHS is set for 5:30 p.m., and their season-finale versus PSHS will be at 2:30 p.m.
