Glenwood girls top Battle Mountain to defend league basketball title
Coal Ridge boys win 3A league
Glenwood Springs High School’s girls basketball team needed one last win to defend its conference title Saturday afternoon on the road at Battle Mountain.
The Demons delivered, scoring a 49-41 win over the Huskies to lay claim to the 4A Western Slope League regular season championship for a second straight year and position themselves among the 32-team state playoffs field.
After Glenwood took a commanding 31-15 lead in the first half, Battle Mountain made a run in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Demons 18-11. But it wasn’t quite enough.
On Friday, the Glenwood girls defeated Eagle Valley on the Devils’ home court, 47-35.
Glenwood wasn’t quite as dominant in this COVID-19-altered season as last year, when the Demons ran the league table en route to the WSL crown.
“We knew coming into the season this year that our league was going to be competitive,” head coach Rhonda Moser said after the Saturday win. “Having four teams competing for the league title heading into the last week was awesome.”
Glenwood closes out the regular season at 8-4 overall with an 8-2 mark in the WSL.
It nearly didn’t happen for the Lady Demons, who initially had their final five games of the season canceled due to COVID-19 quarantine protocols. But four of those games were reinstated, and Glenwood went 3-1 with the only loss coming to league runner-up Palisade last weekend.
“We knew we had to stay focused and show up,” Moser said. “It’s always tough to win at Battle Mountain. Our girls worked super hard, pushed through adversity and truly just love playing the game together.“
Junior Ella Johnson and sophomore Joslyn Spires led the team in scoring against the Huskies with 11 points each, while senior Maddie Moser had 8.
The weekend wins moved Glenwood into the No. 22 spot in the Colorado High School Activities Association RPI power rankings. Postseason tournament seedings and brackets are to be announced Monday.
Glenwood boys come up short against Huskies
In the boys game at Edwards, Battle Mountain controlled the pace through the first three quarters of play, opening a 38-29 lead.
The Demons caught fire in the fourth to make a run at it, but fell four points short in the 54-50 loss to end their season 4-10 overall and 3-9 in the league.
Glenwood did pick up a win on Friday night over Eagle Valley, 59-53. Scoring stats for both games were not immediately posted to Maxpreps.com Colorado.
The Rifle girls, after three straight losses to close the season, including a 53-39 defeat at Summit on Friday, fell to third place in the 4A league and dropped to No. 33 in the state rankings.
Coal Ridge boys secure 3A league title
A 48-27 win at home over the Roaring Fork Rams of Carbondale Saturday locked down the 3A Western Slope League championship for the Coal Ridge boys basketball team.
A narrow 22-19 lead at the half for the Titans turned into a blowout in the second half, as the home team held the Rams scoreless in the third quarter and outscored them 17-8 in the fourth.
Senior Andrew Herrera paced the Coal Ridge team with 12 points, and junior Eddie Salazar had 8 for the victors.
The Titans, 11-3 overall and finishing 6-1 in the league, hold the No. 12 spot in the state RPI power rankings. Seedings and brackets for the 24-team 3A state playoffs will be announced Monday.
Other area weekend scores
Boys: Summit 53, Rifle 45; Gunnison 61, Grand Valley 32; Delta 58, Grand Valley 39; Basalt 53, Roaring Fork 44.
Girls: Summit 53, Rifle 39; Coal Ridge 62, Roaring Fork 17; Grand Valley 57, Gunnison 32; Delta 57, Grand Valley 27.
The Coal Ridge girls (11-3, 3-3) finished third in the league standings, but as the 14th-ranked team in the state among 3A teams the Lady Titans are also in the mix for a postseason bid. The Rifle boys, ranked No. 33, are also on the bubble for a playoff spot.

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