The Mancos Lady Blue Jays (10-11) were bounced from the Class 2A Region 1 tournament on Friday in a 56-34 loss to the Sanford Indians (16-8).
Sanford set up a full-court press early and looked to push the tempo on offense. Although the Indians were able to slip behind the Jays for open looks in transition, they missed countless point-black shots.
Mancos attempted to control the pace of the game by taking care of the ball and staying patient on offense. And by slowing the speed, the Lady Jays were able to stay within four at the end of one, trailing 8-4.
The Lady Jays tried their hand at a full-court press in the second quarter.
Although the first possession ended in a steal by senior Jessica Gutierrez, Sanford got behind the Jays’ defense for layups on three of the next four possessions, so Mancos head coach Mallory Morgan called it off.
Offensively, Gutierrez was able to dribble through the Indians pressure and either score or dish the ball off inside. She scored nine points in the quarter and assisted Emma Most for four points to enter the break down five, 22-17.
However, with just under four minutes to play in the second, Mancos junior Nicole Hess stepped up in the lane to stop Sanford senior Dana Lenz from driving for a score, and after making contact, Hess tweaked her right ankle and went down.
“That definitely took away some of our inside game and we just didn’t attack as much,” said Morgan.
Hess would not return to play, and although the Jays were able to stay within six points after three quarters, the Indians started the fourth on a 12-0 run to pull away and win, 56-34.
“In the first half we just weren’t getting back on transition defense,” Morgan explained. “The second half we were definitely gassed, we were tired. And that’s going to happen when one goes down. And that was the difference in the game.”
The Lady Jays finished the season with a 10-11 record, the best in Morgan’s three-year run as head coach. The Jays were 5-15 in her first season and went 9-12 last year. With Gutierrez as the team’s only senior, Morgan hopes that her young team continues to improve for next season.
“It was definitely an improvement from last year and the year before,” she said of this season. “For as young as we are and as inexperienced, you can’t really ask for more than going to the regional tournament and competing.”