The Ignacio High School girls basketball team was untouchable in league play. Now, it’s time to see if the Bobcats can dance into the state tournament.
After the Bobcats won a seventh consecutive Class 2A District 3 tournament championship Sunday at Durango High School, the Bobcats earned the right to host the 2A Region 8 tournament. Thirty-two teams make the eight regional tournaments. Ignacio (15-6) earned the No. 8 seed and will host No. 9 Wray, No. 24 Burlington (10-13) and No. 25 Rangely (10-12) with three games to decide which team will advance to the eight-team state tournament.
“This is the part of the year that we look forward to, and it’s going to be a grind these next few weeks, and we can’t wait to see where this team goes,” IHS head coach Justa Whitt said after Sunday’s district championship.
Action will begin at 6 p.m. Friday inside the Bobcats’ gymnasium with Ignacio set to take on Rangley. The game between Burlington and Wray will follow at 7:30 p.m., with the regional championship scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday.
The Bobcats blew past league opponents, and their six losses all have come to playoff-bound teams – Class 3A’s No. 2 Pagosa Springs (19-2), No. 9 Alamosa (15-6) and No. 11 Cedaredge (17-5); Class 2A’s No. 1 Limon (20-1) and No. 10 Del Norte (20-2); and New Mexico’s Kirtland Central (22-3).
Jayden Brunson, Ebonee Gomez, Makayla Howell and Charlize Valdez form a formidable scoring quartet that is even more dangerous with depth that includes Larissa Gallegos, Shelcie Gosney and Avaleena Nanaeto.
This Ignacio team has goals beyond winning a regional and has played a battle-tested schedule that will have the Bobcats ready to win games at the state tournament. First, it must win a pair at home this weekend.
Here’s a closer look at the rest of 2A Region 8:
The Panthers finished fifth in 2A District 5 with a 5-6 league record. They are led by senior Skylar Thacker, who has averaged 14.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
Hannah Wilkie, a sophomore, has added eight points and 5.9 rebounds per game for a team that has averaged 33.6 points per game this year.
The Panthers lost two consecutive games against Meeker and Hotchkiss to end the district tournament.
The Eagles went 7-1 in 2A District 2 to finish second behind only No. 2 Yuma (18-3). Wray is the toughest regional team that will go on the road this week.
The Eagles have won 10 of their last 11 games. They have been led by sophomore Taby Jones, who has averaged 13.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. She is aided by senior Morgan Smith, an all-around force with 10.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 4.6 steals and 3.9 assists per game to go with nearly two blocked shots per contest.
The Cougars went 3-2 in 2A District 4 to finish fifth in a league that included top-seed Limon.
Led by Megan Burghart’s 14 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, the Cougars won seven of their final nine games.
Sophomore Trinity Perry has added 10.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game for Burlington.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
