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Strong group of returners ready to lead Durango girls basketball on deeper playoff run

Demons return top four scorers from last year’s squad
Mariah Maestas of Durango High School pushes the ball up the court on Feb. 10, 2024, while playing Grand Junction at DHS. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald file photo)

The 2023-2024 Durango girls basketball team could never get in a rhythm. It was head coach Lauren Moran’s first year as head coach. The Demons struggled to put together offense and only had one player play all 23 games as the team struggled with injuries. Despite this, Durango still made it to the 5A state playoffs and lost in the first round.

Moran and Durango hope for smoother sailing this season in Moran’s second season as head coach.

“The whole team had a really positive summer and a great preseason,” Moran said. “With that senior leadership, we are ready to get on the court and start competing.”

Durango finished 10-13 overall last season and 3-5 in the 6A/5A Southwestern League. Moran said the work started on the upcoming season in September with open gyms and preseason strength and conditioning. The preseason events were very well attended and it made it an easy transition into practice, which started on Nov. 18, according to Moran.

The Demons’ top four scorers return from last year’s team. Senior guard Mariah Maestas led the team with 10.2 points per game as one of the primary ball handlers. She could hit shots from the 3-point line, midrange and was a quality player on defense. Maestas worked in the offseason on her strength.

Senior guard Tyler Trujillo only played seven games last year due to injury and she averaged 8.1 ppg. Trujillo suffered a different injury during volleyball season and Moran hopes to have her back in a few weeks. When Trujillo comes back she’ll be another ball handler the Demons can rely on.

Lilly Fitzpatrick is another senior guard who returns. She had trouble with injuries last year, but when she was healthy, Fitzpatrick could drive to the basket and either finish or draw the foul and get to the free-throw line. She averaged 6.1 ppg in 19 games. Fitzpatrick’s versatility has gotten better since last season.

Senior forward Ellie White is expected to be the Demons’ main presence inside. She’s a strong player who can rebound well and finish inside. She averaged 6.0 ppg last year. Moran said White has worked on her conditioning and finishing at the rtim.

Durango’s biggest problem last year was on the offensive end. The Demons struggled to create open shots for themselves and to knock down the open shots they had. Durango failed to score 50+ points in a game and averaged 34.1 ppg. The Demons were competitive in a lot of games thanks to their defense creating turnovers and fast break points.

“We still want defense to be consistently a strong point for us and it will be,” Moran said. “We can be even stronger defensively than we were last year, but we definitely needed to make some significant improvements on offense. We will; in addition to the work that we've done with the girls, a lot of them have put in a lot of time on their own over the spring, summer and fall working on their skills. We should be stronger offensively this year and that's definitely a focus for us.”

Moran emphasizes paint touches. These touches can be used to score inside or to kick the ball back out for outside shots, making the defense shift. She also wants her team to get out in transition to get easy baskets.

Some non-seniors who could be key contributors are junior forward Ryne Neiman and sophomore Jaelyn Alston. Both players saw time last season with all the injuries Durango had.

A newcomer to the program is Mancos transfer junior guard Claire Goodwin. She should contribute to the Demons offense right away after she averaged 18.4 ppg at Mancos last year. Moran said she can shoot the ball as well as get to the rim.

The Demons will be challenged right away with their schedule. Durango will open up the season at home against Farmington on Tuesday. The Demons will play in a Farmington tournament and a tournament in Aztec in December.

Durango will play Volcano Vista in the opening game at Farmington. The Hawks went 24-6 last season and lost in the 5A New Mexico state title game. Moran expects the 6A/5A Southwestern to be strong again. She also expects the Demons to be in a better position to compete in the league and in the state playoffs.

“Having four seniors that have been a part of the program for a long time, I think they do have ambitious goals and they definitely don't want to have any regrets,” Moran said.

bkelly@durangoherald.com