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Cowboys wrangle Rams girls basketball with 3rd-quarter explosion

Joel Reichenberger
Soroco’s Corey Snyder tries to thread her way through a pair of Meeker defenders Saturday night. The Rams lost to the Cowboys, 57-44.
Joel Reichenberger

Girls game statistics

Meeker 57, Soroco 44

Meeker: 14-12-17-14 — 57

Soroco: 10-8-10-16 — 44

Meeker — Elissa McLaughlin 2 0-0 4 Timbre Shriver 1 2-2 4, Sage Chapin 2 0-0 4, Stacey Fitzgibbons 10 3-12 23, Rebecca de Vergie 4 2-4 10, Kaysyn Chintala 5 0-0 12.

Totals: 24 7-18 57.

Soroco — Caitlyn Berry 2 0-0 5, Madison George 3 0-0 7, Lindsay Miles 1 1-2 4, Corey Snyder 7 2-5 16, Shelby Miles 1 0-0 2, Micaela Meyer 3 0-0 6, Ceanna Rossi 2 0-0 4.

Totals: 19 3-7 44.

3-pointers: Meeker (2) — Chintala 2. Soroco (1) — L. Miles.

Boys game statistics

Meeker 68, Soroco 40

Meeker 20-19-9-20 — 68

Soroco 7-8-9-16 — 40

Meeker — Mitch Jacob 6 0-1 15, Dakota Rowlett 6 3-3 15, Colton Brown 2 2-2 6, Jake Nieslanik 1 0-0 2, Tyrel Gerloff 6 0-0 12, Seth Boesch 5 2-2 12, Brock Campbell 1 0-1 2, Trevor Matrisciano 1 0-0 2, Ryan Wix 1 0-0 2. Totals: 26 7-9 68.

Soroco — Michael Rossi 4 0-0 10, Alex Estes 2 2-2 6, Nic Paxton 2 0-0 6, Leif Carlson 3 0-3 6, Matt Watwood 6 0-0 12.

Totals: 17 2-5 40.

3-pointers: Meeker (3) — Jacob 3. Soroco (2) — Paxton 2.





Soroco’s Corey Snyder tries to thread her way through a pair of Meeker defenders Saturday night. The Rams lost to the Cowboys, 57-44.
Joel Reichenberger

Girls game statistics

Meeker 57, Soroco 44

Meeker: 14-12-17-14 — 57

Soroco: 10-8-10-16 — 44



Meeker — Elissa McLaughlin 2 0-0 4 Timbre Shriver 1 2-2 4, Sage Chapin 2 0-0 4, Stacey Fitzgibbons 10 3-12 23, Rebecca de Vergie 4 2-4 10, Kaysyn Chintala 5 0-0 12.

Totals: 24 7-18 57.



Soroco — Caitlyn Berry 2 0-0 5, Madison George 3 0-0 7, Lindsay Miles 1 1-2 4, Corey Snyder 7 2-5 16, Shelby Miles 1 0-0 2, Micaela Meyer 3 0-0 6, Ceanna Rossi 2 0-0 4.

Totals: 19 3-7 44.

3-pointers: Meeker (2) — Chintala 2. Soroco (1) — L. Miles.

Boys game statistics

Meeker 68, Soroco 40

Meeker 20-19-9-20 — 68

Soroco 7-8-9-16 — 40

Meeker — Mitch Jacob 6 0-1 15, Dakota Rowlett 6 3-3 15, Colton Brown 2 2-2 6, Jake Nieslanik 1 0-0 2, Tyrel Gerloff 6 0-0 12, Seth Boesch 5 2-2 12, Brock Campbell 1 0-1 2, Trevor Matrisciano 1 0-0 2, Ryan Wix 1 0-0 2. Totals: 26 7-9 68.

Soroco — Michael Rossi 4 0-0 10, Alex Estes 2 2-2 6, Nic Paxton 2 0-0 6, Leif Carlson 3 0-3 6, Matt Watwood 6 0-0 12.

Totals: 17 2-5 40.

3-pointers: Meeker (3) — Jacob 3. Soroco (2) — Paxton 2.

— They surged in the second half, cutting into Meeker’s big lead to narrow the deficit to four points. A late-third-quarter spate of bad play doomed the Soroco High School girls basketball team Saturday night, however. The squad fell to Meeker, 57-44.

“We’re not quite there yet,” Rams coach David Bruner said. “We’re still making some of those same mistakes — turnovers, walking with the ball.”

Turnovers were the stats that doomed Soroco’s comeback bid. Meeker led by four after one quarter and eight after half. The Rams made it 30-26 with about three minutes remaining in the third quarter, however.

Errant passes and traveling calls grounded that momentum to a halt. Meeker senior Stacey Fitzgibbons scored to make it six and then scored again after a steal to make the deficit eight.

Meeker’s Timbre Shriver sank a pair of free throws to expand it to 10, and by the end of the quarter, the once-tight game was blown open to the tune of 15 points.

“These kids have to learn how to win,” Bruner said.

Fitzgibbons led the scorers with 23 points and was a force in the paint that Soroco simply had no answer for. The Cowboys also picked up 10 from forward Rebecca de Vergie.

“We were probably giving up a foot in height to each one of those girls,” Bruner said. “Those big girls are the key to their game, and we knew that. You have to play tough defense every time down the floor. To beat them, you just have to slow them down.”

Corey Snyder paced Soroco’s cagers with 16 points. Madison George had seven, and Shelby Miles had six.

“We’re getting better,” Bruner said after the game. “We just have to get over that hump. We’re not there yet, but they’re working hard. We’re going to get there.”

George led the way for Soroco in a Friday night victory at De Beque. She scored 21 points in a 59-28 rout. Snyder added 11.

Soroco returns to the court at 5:30 p.m. Friday in Oak Creek against Plateau Valley.

Meeker beats Soroco boys basketball team, 68-40

There were some positives, Soroco boys basketball coach Sam McLeod said Saturday night.

He pointed to the fight his team showed in the second half and to strong play from his freshmen — rookie Nic Paxton drained two 3-point shots.

But the overall result was a tough one as the Rams were blown out by Meeker, one of the best Class 2A boys teams in the state. The Cowboys won, 68-40.

“It was a challenge for sure,” McLeod said. “That’s as good of a team as we’ll see all season — as good as anyone will see all season. It was tough, but our kids didn’t quit, and they played their best down the stretch.”

Meeker built a 20-7 lead in the first quarter then had little trouble expanding upon it in the second, outscoring the Rams by 11 points in that period. Soroco played considerably better in the second half to keep the margin from growing much beyond the 24-point halftime difference.

Senior forward Matt Watwood led Soroco with 12 points. Michael Rossi chipped in 10. Mitch Jacob and Dakota Rowlett each dropped 15 points in for Meeker, and Tyrel Gerloff and Seth Boesch each scored 12.

Steamboat girls roll over Glenwood Springs, 55-40

Colleen King led the Steamboat Springs High School girls basketball team with 26 points, but Sailors’ coach John Ameen said it was the defense of Emi Birch as much as anything that led to the team’s 55-40 win at Glenwood Springs.

Birch helped shut down Glenwood’s top scorer, Kenzi Kuhn, and pave the way to the victory.

“That girl has gone for 30 a couple times and averages 21. We held her to 17, but she had to really work to get that much,” Ameen said. “She was getting no easy shots. It was a good all-around effort.”

Steamboat (10-4, 5-1) had a 29-21 lead at the end of the first half and then expanded on it in the second.

King had little trouble operating in the paint.

“They just couldn’t stop her down there,” Ameen said.

Hannah Moore scored 12 points for Steamboat.

The team returns to the court at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Steamboat Springs against Moffat County.


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