Class 3A No. 7 Delta girls hoops takes down Montrose in rematch

MONTROSE – In a rematch of a Dec. 17 game that went in Montrose’s favor, the Delta and Montrose girls basketball teams took the court again on Tuesday.

This time, it was Delta that took home a 39-26 victory.

“We were a little flat to start the game offensively, but our defense kept us in the game early,” Delta head coach Kyle Crowder said. “In the second half, we started working harder on defense and this generated scoring opportunities. Kaelynn Porter shot the ball well tonight to give us some momentum. Erika Kuta was a force on both ends. She rebounded well and finally got some shots to fall in the second half.

“Tremendous effort from our entire team. We were able to contest their shooters. Along with hustling defense, we were able to keep them under 30 points. Big win against a quality team. Excited for the girls. This is a great momentum win to start the week.”

In the first contest between the two teams, Montrose (8-5) won 47-40. In the rematch, Delta (6-1), ranked No. 7 in Class 3A and facing a 4A opponent, trailed 15-13 at halftime.

The Panthers scored four straight to open the third quarter and take the lead, going on to lead 28-20 after three quarters and win 39-26.

“Give Delta credit,” Montrose head coach Steve Skiff said. “They came out and executed and made plays when they needed to. We had some good looks and didn’t just make some shots. Proud of the way we defended.”

Kuta had 13 points to lead Delta. Porter had 11 and Aubrey Frasier had nine.

Taylor Yanosky led Montrose with eight points and Heather Power had nine points.

Delta will be at Fruita Monument on Friday. Montrose will be at Fruita Monument on Tuesday in its first league game.