Based on recent history, one would argue a meeting between Grand Valley Cardinals and the St. Mary’s Pirates would see the Pirates as the favorites and the Cardinals as underdogs. St. Mary’s is the team to win the state title in 2018 and 2019, and they have been regulars in reaching the Great 8 of the state tournament. As for Grand Valley, this was its first appearance in the Great 8 round since 2008.
This season, however, the roles were reversed as Grand Valley entered as the No. 4 seed and St. Mary’s was the No. 12 seed, the lowest seeded team remaining in the girls bracket for Class 3A.
Despite not having been to the Great 8 for a while, Grand Valley lived up to the part, holding on for a narrow 52-50 win to reach the Final Four round.
“It feels really good,” Jaycee Pittman said. “All of us worked really well together.”
Grand Valley would open the game scoring the first two points and never allowed St. Mary’s to take the lead. After some back-and-forth in the first quarter that saw the Cardinals lead 11-9, they gained some momentum and went on their first scoring run of the night in the second to push ahead 28-17.
Pittman, AbbeyRose Parker and Bailey Radel all scored in the second quarter, doing most of the damage in the paint and going towards the basket versus the defense.
“We wanted to get to the bucket,” Grand Valley coach Scott Parker said. “We wanted to either get some shots there or get in-rhythm threes. That’s the key for us offensively, to get the ball inside.”
The double-digit lead that Grand Valley enjoyed at halftime was short lived, however, as St. Mary’s came out and found an edge on both ends of the court. Behind leading scorer Ellie Hartman getting hot from the field after a slow first half, and a defense that began generated turnovers and stringing together stops, the lead would go down to as low as four points in the third quarter. Another run came in the fourth, this time cutting the lead down to as little as 44-43 late in the quarter.
Despite the mounting pressure, Grand Valley never caved and gave up its lead.
“It was important for us,” Pittman said. “When piranhas in the water smell blood, they get crazy. We can’t let (St. Mary’s) get ahead or they will get their momentum up.”
Aiding the team in keeping the lead late were a number of clutch free throws from Radel and Parker that give them just enough of a lead to hang on. As a team, they made 14 of 20 free throws in the win.
“It was great to see,” Parker said. “I used to have an assistant who said free throws count. We shoot a lot of free throws and it showed up today.”
Radel made all eight of her free throws on her way to lead with 19 points on the night. Following up were Parker with 17 and Pittman at nine. Hartman carried the scoring load with 22 points for St. Mary’s.
Having proved they belong back on the big stage, Grand Valley hopes to carry some momentum from Thursday’s win into the Final Four.
“We just have to not be afraid of the stage,” Parker said. “We just have to come out and play like we have been doing and believe in each other.”
(1) Platte Valley 51, (8) Lamar 29
The defending state champions in Class 3A have proven they are still the team to beat up to this point with an undefeated record and a 37-game win streak heading to the University of Denver.
This week, the Platte Valley Broncos are looking to show the focus and determination needed to repeat as champions. Their first step came on Thursday with a 51-29 over Lamar in the Great 8.
The Broncos attacked from the perimeter early and often, hitting five of 10 3-point attempts in the first half through Bree Bunting, Cassie Ridings and Brooke Bunting. The free-flowing offense helped Platte Valley jump to an 18-4 lead in the first quarter, but they were unable to pull away in the second. Lamar answered with 13 points in the second, led by Brooklyn Robbins, to keep them alive.
In the second half, the Broncos turned it up on both ends of the court, flexing their championship aspirations. More 3-pointers fell and the team would finish 8-of-26 from behind the arc in the game, led by three from Bree Bunting. They were also able to attack the rim with drives when the defense closed out hard, and it also with second-chance points from Andi Schissler who worked the offensive boards with the defense spread out along the perimeter. Platte Valley would outscore Lamar 24-12 in the second half to clear its path back to the Final Four.
Leading the Broncos in the victory were Bree and Brooke Bunting with 13 points each. Andi Schissler also hit double figures with 10. Seven different players scored for Lamar, led by Robbins with nine.
The win extends Platte Valley’s current win streak to 38 straight wins dating back to last season.
(2) University 44, (10) Delta 32
The University Bulldogs have grinded out many wins on the year, and that hard-nosed effort proved to be crucial in their return trip to the University of Denver.
The Bulldogs used good defense to hold on for a 44-32 win, advancing to the Final Four for the second consecutive year.
Delta started off well in the first quarter with Erika Kuta scoring the first six points for the team, ranging from a drive to the rim, a free throw, and a 3-point make. Kylie Huff added two points herself and a stingy start on defense saw them take an 8-3 lead into the second quarter.
From there, the University offense started to wake up some, allowing them to take a lead and build on it while not allowing Delta to string together a big scoring run.
Taryn Kravig carried the initial scoring load with nine points in the first half, all coming from behind the arc, and another 3-pointer from Janay Kravig and an and-one opportunity from Addison Harding helped the team bounce back with 12 points. Meanwhile, the tough defense continued, holding Delta to one contested shot per possession and not giving up anything easy in the paint. The combination resulted in University taking a 15-13 lead into the halftime break.
Harding then became the focal point on offense for University in the second half as she controlled the action in the paint and was able to get out in transition. Her presence in the paint was hard to stop and she finished with 15 points, 12 of which came in the second half. A few more 3-pointers added on saw the Bulldogs score 29 points and turn a slim lead into a double-digit advantage they pulled away from.
Taryn Kravig led all scorers with 10 and Harding’s big second half offensively saw her score 15 in the win, while Kuta was the lone player in double figures for Delta with 11.
(3) The Vanguard School 39, (11) Colorado Springs Christian 35 (OT)
The first game of the Great 8 round on Thursday needed extra time as league foes The Vanguard School and Colorado Springs Christian faced off in the opening game of the morning. In the end, The Vanguard School prevailed 39-35 to advance to the Final Four.
“It’s a really good feeling, especially doing this with some of our best friends,” Hailey Blachard of The Vanguard School said. “Being here together and winning it, that was really fun. We all pull each other up.”
Defense carried The Vanguard School, including a stretch where they held Colorado Springs Christian off the scoreboard for seven straight minutes to begin the second half. Meanwhile, Blanchard, Delicia Bustamante and Jordan Seppa helped score to push the lead to as many as 10 points.
Things tightened up midway through the fourth quarter thanks to a late surge from Wilna Colopy, Elleah Hoekert and Grace Minihane. They were able to carry the offensive load, and the team came together to get key defensive stops late. The lead was eventually erased going into the final minute of the game.
“We were just thinking if they score, we will score and just go back-and-forth,” Blanchard said. “We were just thinking that this is our game and we can come back from it.”
Colorado Springs Christian took the lead to start overtime, but key steals from Elysia Bottcher and Juliana Garcia late allowed The Vanguard School to take the lead. Blanchard then sealed the win with 10 seconds remaining in the overtime period, knocking down two free throws to push the lead to four points.
“I was honestly hoping they went in,” Blanchard said. “I took a deep breath and said this is for my team, this is for state.”
Juliana Garcia was the top scorer for The Vanguard School with 10 points while Blanchard and Seppa each finished with eight. Colopy and Elleah Hoekert were tied for the team high in points with eight for Colorado Springs Christian.
The win on Thursday marked the third win for The Vanguard School over Colorado Springs Christian this season, all three coming by single digits.