3A girls basketball semifinals: The Vanguard, Colorado Springs Christian, advance to title game
By Brad Cochi
Photo: Brad Cochi/CHSAANow
The Class 3A girls basketball semifinals took place Friday night at the the University of Denver’s Magness Arena. The Vanguard and Colorado Springs Christian won their respective games and advanced to the state championship game. They’ll match up Saturday for the 3A girls basketball state title.
(5) The Vanguard 59, (8) Ellicott 36
In each of the past two seasons, The Vanguard’s girls basketball team has been eliminated in the Class 3A Final Four.
That streak of coming so close to the championship game and falling just short is now over.
On Friday at the University of Denver’s Hamilton Gymnasium, the fifth-seeded Coursers won 59-36 over No. 9 Ellicott in the Class 3A Final Four. On Saturday, The Vanguard’s girls will take the court in a long-awaited title match with a shot at claiming their program’s first-ever state title.
“It’s awesome. It’s a great feeling and the girls have earned it,” Coursers head coach Scott Arrasmith said. “The girls have been through a lot and it’s just been great to have a group of seniors with their kind of experience. Getting through the Great 8 and having them lead us is really special.”
Averaging just over 70 points per game in their first three postseason games, the Coursers (21-5) had a 32-14 lead over Ellicott (20-6) at the midway break.
Vanguard senior Hailey Blanchard led the Coursers with 13 points. Jordyn Christensen scored 10 points and Elysia Bottcher finished with nine.
“One thing about us is we always going into every game like it could be our last game,” Blanchard said. “Play for each other, work for each other, if you’re on the bench or on the court, keep the energy up at all times. Literally, we’ve been so close three times and there’s no other team that’s been here three times. That’s pushed us more and we just need to play like we know how, and we can do it for the first time in our school’s history.”
Ellicott’s Alyssa Lagasse scored 11 of her game-high 16 points in the second half, but it wasn’t enough for the Thunderhawks to catch the Coursers.
Ellicott last won a state championship in 1995.
The Vanguard will face No. 3 Colorado Christian in the 3A championship game at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
(3) Colorado Springs Christian 33, (7) St. Mary’s 29
This year’s girls basketball Class 3A Final Four was essentially a Tri-Peaks League reunion.
With all four semifinalists hailing from the Tri-Peaks, the final teams remaining were plenty familiar with one another. In the second semifinal of the night on Friday at the University of Denver’s Hamilton Gymnasium, No. 3 Colorado Springs Christian and No. 7 St. Mary’s squared off for the third time in the 2022-23 campaign.
For the third time, the CSCS Lions (24-2) were victorious over their rival Pirates (20-5). Friday’s game, however, was very different than the pair of 20-point victories the Lions posted during the season. This time, the Lions used a defensive stand in the fourth quarter to win 33-29 and advance to the state title game.
“Our Tri-Peaks Conference is just so good this year,” Lions head coach Mark Engesser said. “Four teams in the Final Four and five teams in the Great 8. It’s just so tough and such good basketball. It’s just fantastic competition and the conference games prepare you so well for coming here because it’s just a grind when you’re playing all these good teams.”
Now in the championship game, the Lions have a chance to win their first state title since 2002.
“I can’t even fathom it,” Lions sophomore Abigail Perry said. “I can’t believe we’re here. It’s crazy. Tomorrow’s the championship. That’s awesome.”
The Lions held the Pirates scoreless in the fourth quarter while going 5 for 10 at the free-throw line to win. The game was tied at 29-29 with 2 minutes, 45 seconds left, and the Lions made four of eight free-throws in the final minutes, including a pair from freshman Kinley Asp that gave the Lions a four-point lead with 4.3 seconds left to seal the victory.
Grace Minihane led the Lions with 13 points, Perry scored 10 points and Asp finished with five.
Maeve Salveson led the Pirates with 13 points and Emerson Kutz scored 11 points.
The Lions will face The Vanguard in Saturday’s title game.
