Avionne Gomez won her team over with leadership, and she won over the state with her signature 3-point shot.
The Ignacio High School junior tied a girls basketball single-game state record with 10 made 3-pointers Feb. 16 at home against Mancos. She also helped lead the team to the Class 2A Great Eight state tournament in Loveland, as the Bobcats claimed the district and regional championships in 2017.
That effort helped Gomez land on the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 2A All-State Honorable Mention list.
“It’s amazing,” IHS head coach Shane Seibel said. “When I found out, it made my heart full.”
Gomez scored 15.3 points per game and averaged five rebounds and 2.7 steals. She made 50 shots from behind the 3-point line and helped the Bobcats to a 16-8 overall record and 10-1 standing in the Class 2A/1A San Juan Basin League.
“She put in the time and effort during the season, and she struggled in the beginning,” Seibel said. “She realized she had to lead the team. It started with her learning how to lead herself and do her best.”
Seibel called Gomez a great learner and challenged her to be a positive leader and be more vocal with the team.
It was during Gomez’s historic night behind the 3-point line against Mancos that Seibel truly realized the team had come together as one behind their leader.
“It gave us such an emotional lift,” he said. “I took note of our bench and the excitement it brought. From our blue team to the starters, that really solidified that every one of them was for each other. That to me means a lot. It was a special spark.”
Courtney Lemon of Norwood was named the SJBL Player of the Year. She averaged 13.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and three assists per game. Norwood head coach Greg King was named the league’s coach of the year.
IHS freshman Morgan Herrera earned All-SJBL Second Team honors. In only 15 games of action, she averaged 13.7 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. She will be a Class 2A star for years to come for the Bobcats.
IHS senior Alejandra Lujan was named to the All-SJBL honorable mention list. She averaged 5.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
Katrina Chandler was named the Class 4A/5A Southwestern League Player of the Year for girls basketball. But the senior was inexplicably left off the CHSAA Class 4A All-State rosters.
Chandler, a Durango High School senior who will play for Division II Colorado Mesa University in college, was selected to the All-League First Team as well as player of the year after leading the team to a 17-8 overall record and a 6-2 record in league. The Demons earned the 16-seed in the state tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 before falling to state-runner up Pueblo South in the Sweet 16.
Chandler scored 15.4 points per game and averaged 4.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.5 steals per game from her point guard position. She did it all while battling through injuries and double teams all season.
Chandler’s teammate Hilda Garcia, a junior transfer, also was named to the All-SWL First Team. In 13 games, she averaged 9.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game.
Durango senior forward Taylor Edwards, who will play at Otero Junior College, was named to the All-SWL Second Team. She averaged 7.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game to go with 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals.
Wolverines junior Courtney Bayles was an honorable mention on the All-Intermountain League team for girls basketball.
The Bayfield forward averaged 7.5 points and 6 rebounds per game, as Bayfield had an improved season at 6-14 overall and 2-8 in the IML, a league that featured state Great Eight teams Centauri and Pagosa Springs.
IML Co-Players of the Year Ember Canty of Centauri and Morgan Lewis of Pagosa Springs were both named to the CHSAA Class 3A All-State Second Team.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
