After getting into some foul trouble on Friday at Grand Junction Central, the Durango High School girls basketball team went into halftime trailing 17-12.
The Demons, however, dominated the third quarter, 26-2, to pull away from the Warriors and never looked back, winning the league game 51-32.
“We just picked up our defensive intensity, changed our mentality and looked to attack on defense and on offense,” head coach Tim Fitzpatrick said.
Mason Rowland scored 21 points, all in the second half, to lead DHS. Tyler Trujillo added seven, Halle Peterson and Adde Neiman both scored six, Riley Campbell added five while Lily Fitzpatrick scored three, Reese Glover two and Mariah Maestas one.
“That was a big win; Grand Junction Central is a good team,” Fitzpatrick said. “The third, that was one of the best quarters we’ve played all year, and it shows the potential this team has.”
The next day, DHS had little trouble beating Grand Junction, 44-11.
“For us, we wanted to come out and play solid, and we did,” Fitzpatrick said. “Kids got a lot of minutes. Our bench has been huge for us all season.”
Rowland led all scorers with 17 points. Carter Neiman scored seven, Campbell added six, Peterson scored four, Trujillo and Fitzpatrick both scored three while Adde Neiman and Ellie White each chipped in two.
With the wins, DHS improved to 18-2 overall and 5-1 in the 6A/5A Southwestern League while Central slipped to 11-9, 2-4 and Grand Junction went to 0-21, 0-6.
This week, DHS will host third-place Montrose (14-7, 2-4) at 6 p.m. Friday and league-leading Fruita Monument (17-3, 6-0) at noon Saturday in its final regular season games. The team’s seniors will be recognized before Friday’s game while Saturday’s contest will likely determine the league champion.
“I’d encourage people to come out and try to pack the gym on Friday and Saturday,” Fitzpatrick said, calling his team “a special group.”
“They’re good basketball players and athletes,” the coach said. “They like to compete. They’re tough, physically and mentally. They’re not afraid to work hard. And they’ve done a good job being consistent and sticking to what makes them them.”
The state brackets will be released Sunday, and DHS is currently No. 4 in the CHSAA seeding index. DHS will likely host a first-round game on Tuesday.
The Durango boys basketball team lost both of its games in Grand Junction over the weekend. DHS fell to Central, 49-32, on Friday and then to Grand Junction 46-37 on Saturday.
The Demons slid to 6-15 overall and 1-5 in the SWL with the losses.
The Demons will wrap up their regular season this weekend against Montrose (14-7, 3-3) on Friday and Fruita on Saturday (18-2, 5-1), following the girls’ games.
