Frustration may not have been completely visible on the Pirates' faces going in, but as last Friday's contest inside BHS Gymnasium progressed, it was hard not to perceive Pagosa Springs' disgust at being caught up in yet another clash decided by five points or fewer.
Then Bayfield sophomore guard Keyon Prior swished a buzzer-beating three-pointer at the end of regulation. That resulted in a 59-56 triumph and bedlam upon the court. The upset resulted in a PSHS record of 3-4 in such tense games and to 5-6 overall (1-2 in the 3A Intermountain).
Relying primarily on junior guard/forward Isaiah Griego, the visitors held a slim 12-11 lead after the first quarter. Sparked by the bench play of junior McKay Wells and sophomore Turner Kennedy, the Wolverines (7-5, 3-0) evened the score at 24 by halftime. Wells and Kennedy scored two treys and 12 first-half points.
The visitors again looked for Griego to be their catalyst in the third quarter, and he responded with seven points. However, with six different Bayfield players booking at least one point in the third - led by five each by junior center/forward Ryan Phelps and sophomore forward Hayden Farmer - BHS still went into the fourth ahead 42-40.
Fighting through Pagosa Springs seniors Ethan Brown and Lane Schaaf in the paint, Phelps managed another seven points in the fourth quarter, and Farmer again found the range for one of his signature, rainbow-ing triples from three or four feet beyond the arc.
Meanwhile, Pirate junior Keaton Laverty hustled to the hoop for six of his 14 points and Griego dropped in the last five of his game-high 20 to all but offset Bayfield's peaking pair, meaning someone else would likely have to get involved to sway the balance.
PSHS sophomore reserve guard Jesus Pacheco sank an unexpected three during the final frame, but ultimately it would be Prior. Prior had canned two vital free throws late in the quarter, giving the Wolverines a 56-54 lead before the Pirates struck back with a Laverty basket.
Still, the Wolverines would gain the last possession.
Junior guard Dax Snooks, whose nine rebounds actually led the team, forced a turnover as Pagosa Springs tried playing for the final shot, allowing BHS to hurry across midcourt so Head Coach Jeff Lehnus could call timeout with the inbounds pass to come from Bayfield's side of the center line.
Six seconds remained, and most would have expected either the 6'4" Phelps or 6'3" Farmer to be the Wolverines' intended target somewhere close to the basket. Pagosa did as well, and after Prior received the throw-in with neither big sufficiently open, the 5'11" Prior fired from roughly five feet beyond the three-point arc.
And, with his only long-range make after five misses, into Bayfield Basketball lore.
"Coach, people in the stands, teammates, they all kept telling me to keep shooting the ball," he said. "They said my shot was there and it's gonna fall. I just took the shot. It felt good and went in."
All told, Phelps led BHS with 14 points and Farmer registered 12. Prior finished with eight and five assists as the Wolverines shot 20-of-46 (43 percent) from the field overall and 5-16 from downtown. Wells finished with seven points and Snooks six. Phelps grabbed five rebounds and Farmer four.
Brown chipped in 10 points for PSHS and Pacheco finished with five.
Up next, Bayfield will travel to La Jara to square off with Centauri Saturday night, with the Falcons standing 7-6, 1-3 entering Friday's scheduled home game versus the Pirates.
