Basketball returns from Christmas Break


After taking a two week break for Christmas teams returned to the basketball court. This past week there were two games that I was able to attend the Springfield Longhorns facing off against the Cheyenne Wells Tigers, and the South Baca Patriots facing the Walsh Eagles.

South Baca Lady Patriots v. Walsh Lady Eagles

The week started off with the South Baca Patriots facing off against the Walsh Eagles, and at least one of these games turned out to be an exciting one. The night started off with the Lady Patriots against the Lady Eagles. The Lady Patriots came out hot in the first quarter both offensively and defensively forcing turnovers and turning them into easy baskets. The Lady Patriots were able to grab a quick 18-2 lead after the first quarter, with suffocating defense and great offense. Leading scorers for the Patriots in the period were Kate Elmore (6 points) and Jami Quick (6 points). At the end of the period buzzer Walsh’s Emily Hume was able to make a basket with an and one opportunity, giving Walsh their 2 points for the quarter.

The second period of the game was much of the same for both teams. The Lady Patriots scored another 12 points in the period while Walsh was only able to score 2 more points. As a result, the score at the end of the period was 30-4. 4 Patriots contributed to their 12 points in the period, Mariah Stegman (3 points), Brie Coleman (3 points), Jadyn Patrick (2 points), and Jami Quick (4 points). Larissa Beecham (2 points) was the only Eagle to score in the quarter.

The second half got out of hand in the first few minutes of the third period. The Patriots were able to score 21 of their 30 points in the third period, while Walsh failed to score in the second half of the game. Kate Elmore was the leading scorer for the Patriots in the third scoring 10 points. In the 4th quarter the Patriots scored 9 points with Jadyn Patrick being the leading scorer of the period with 3 points. The final score of the game was 60-4, with Kate Elmore was the leading scorer for the Patriots with 16 points and Emily Hume and Larissa Beecham were the leading scorers for the Eagles with 2 points a piece.

South Baca Boys Basketball v. Walsh Eagles

Coming into this game winless, both teams looked to obtain their first win of the season. The game started off with a both teams missing shots and struggling to score against the others defense. The first basket was not scored until 3 minutes into the game. At the end of the first quarter the score was 4-1 in favor of the Patriots. Tyler Penick scored Walsh’s point in the period. Nano Gutierrez and Hayden Brooks scored 2 points each for the Patriots in the quarter. The second period was very much how the rest of the game would go. Both the Patriots and the Eagles would both score around the same every quarter. the quarter would end with the Patriots scoring 11 and the Eagles scoring 9. Evan Mayo (5 points) was the high scorer for the Patriots, and Leyton Jones (6 points) was the high scorer for the Eagles.

The third quarter was the closest quarter of them all, with both teams scoring 10 points each. Nano Gutierrez and Evan Mayo both got into foul trouble early into the third period. With Evan Mayo out for the Patriots Zeek Wills stepped up scoring a pair of three point baskets. Landen Stegman also added 4 points in the period for the Patriots. The Walsh Eagles had 3 people score in the third, Leyton Jones (1 point), Gavin McCall (7 points), and Tyler Penick (2 points).

In the fourth quarter the Patriots were able to pull ahead with a 13-10 quarter. This led to the Patriots ending the game and obtaining their first win of the season. The final score of the game was 38-30 in favor of the Patriots. In the final quarter Zeek Wills took over the scoring for the Patriots scoring 9 of the patriots 13 points in the period. Adrian Alvarez led the Eagles in scoring in the fourth with 5 points.

The Patriots leading scorer for the game was Zeek Wills with 17 points.

Springfield Lady Longhorns v. Cheyenne Wells Lady Tigers

The Springfield Longhorns boys and Girls teams faced off against the Cheyenne Wells Tigers on Friday. The night started off with the Lady Longhorns matching up against the Lady Tigers. The Longhorns were trying to bounce back after their championship loss to McClave Cardinals in the Lamar Holiday tournament before break.

The Lady Longhorns seemed rusty after the two week break. They were quickly given three fouls within the first three minutes of the quarter. With Springfield’s Aliyah Cohoon committing two of those three fouls. Springfield was only able to grab 1 rebound in the first 4 minutes of the game. They struggled with shot making in the first quarter only scoring 4 points, which is their worst start to a game all season long. However, their defense stepped up not allowing the Lady Tigers to gain a huge lead, leaving the score after the first quarter 4-7 in favor of the Tigers. Lainee Leathers (2 points) and Brakelle Westphal (2 points) were the only contributors for the Longhorns in the period.

At the start of the second the Lady Longhorns committed a string of turnovers which led to a 2-11 run by the Cheyenne Wells Lady Tigers. Halfway through the second the Lady Longhorns decided to pick up the scoring. Scoring 6 more points in the last 3 minutes of the quarter, leaving the score at 12-20, Tigers, at halftime. Alayah Meltabarger was the main scorer for the Longhorns in the period with 5 points.

In the third quarter both teams were scoring at will. Both teams having trouble stopping the other on the defensive side of the ball. Springfield came out of halftime and hit a 3 point basket within the first 15 seconds of the quarter. This looked promising for a Lady Longhorns team that was struggling to score in previous quarters. The Lady Longhorns would go on a quick scoring run bringing the score within 4 points. After the run the Lady Horns would turn the ball over two times. This led to the Tigers gaining another 9 point lead. At the end of the quarter the score was 28-39. Both Lainee Leathers and Alayah Meltabarger would score 5 points each in the period.

In the fourth period it once again seemed Springfield could not buy a basket, this was quite the contrary for The Lady Tigers. The Lady Tigers scored 13 to The Lady Longhorns 7 in the final period. This would leave final score at 35-52 in favor of the Lady Tigers handing the Lady Longhorns their second loss of the season. Springfield’s high scorer for the game was Alayah Meltabarger with 15 points.

Springfield Longhorns v. Cheyenne Wells Tigers

The Springfield boys basketball team played in one exciting game on that Friday night. The Cheyenne Wells boys basketball team came into the game ranked number 7 in Colorado class 1A.

The Longhorns started out the game hot quickly gaining a 8-2 lead within the first 3 minutes of the game. However, after gaining that lead, the Longhorns were unable to score in the last 5 minutes of the quarter. The tigers would go on a 7-0 run in those minutes, leaving the score after 1 period 8-9 in favor of the Tigers. Four Longhorns scored two points in the period Colby Batterton, Kyler Crane, Kurt Parks, and Cooper Stolebarger.

In the second quarter the Tigers would go on a run to gain a 7 point lead. Although Springfield struggled in the first few minutes of the second, towards the end the Longhorns picked up the pace offensively to tie the game at 19 a piece with 1 minute left. The Tigers would then drill a 3 point basket at the buzzer to go into halftime with a 3 point lead, 19-22. Like the first 4 Longhorns would score in the period Colby Batterton (5 points), Kyler Crane (2 points), Reese Porter (2 points), and Cooper Stolebarger (2 points).

Much like the girls game the third period was one where both teams were on when it came to scoring. Halfway through the third Springfield was able to tie the score at 31 points a piece. The Longhorns would then turn the ball over 4 consecutive times. Which then led to Cheyenne Wells scoring 8 unanswered points and regaining the lead. Springfield would score 18 but would have trouble with Cheyenne Wells offense letting them score 23 in the quarter. The leading scorers for the Longhorns in the period were Colby Batterton (6 points) and Kyler Crane (8 points).

The fourth period was one to remember. With three minutes left in the period the Longhorns forced several turnovers to bring the game back within 3 points. The Longhorns would make another layup to make it a one point game. A steal and layup from Colby Batterton would give the Longhorns their second lead of the game with 17 seconds left. Cooper Stolebarger would go to the free throw line where he would hit 1 out of 2 to give Springfield a 2 point lead. Cheyenne Wells continued to play the foul game. Kyler Crane would be the one to get two pairs of free throws, within the last 10 seconds of the game hitting all 4 to close out the game and put the final score at 56-50.

Springfield ended the game on a 19-5 run to finish out the game and complete the comeback in the final minutes of the game. Springfield’s top scorers for the game was Kyler Crane with 22 points, and Colby Batterton with 15, 9 of them coming from timely 3 point baskets.


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