Valor Christian girls basketball runs Jeffco League win streak to 29 games

ARVADA — Two of the best guards in the state put on a scoring show Friday night at Ralston Valley High School.

Valor Christian senior Peyton Jones — University of Utah signee — poured in 31 points to lead the Eagles to a 58-43 victory over Ralston Valley in the Class 6A Jeffco League showdown. Not to be outdone, Ralston Valley junior Santana Sabus had 30 points for the Mustangs.

“It’s it fun to see them match-up against each other and also guard each other too?,” Valor coach Jessika Caldwell said after the Eagles’ third straight victory to start league play. “It was really fun to watch as a coach.”

Ralston Valley (6-5 record, 2-1 in league) jumped out to a 16-7 lead in the first quarter. Sabus was on fire scoring 14 points in the opening 7 minutes. The junior is averaging a double-double so far this season with 24 points and nearly 11 rebounds per game.

“I love challenging myself,” Sabus said of the head-to-head batting versus Jones. “Obviously she is an amazing player and going to do great things over at Utah. It’s awesome to have a challenge and compete against the best.”

Sabus had 20 points at halftime, but the tide started to turn with Valor going on a 12-0 run in the final minutes of the first quarter until midway through the second quarter. The Eagles took a 26-22 lead at halftime.

Jones hit a pair of 3-pointers in the second quarter before catching fire in the third. The senior had 18 points after halftime to finish with a game-high 31 points. Her season-high point total this season is 41 points against Cherry Creek.

“At halftime in the locker room we just flipped the switch,” Jones said. “That is what we needed. We came back in the second half fighting. We really had a great second half of defense.”

Ralston Valley was held to 21 points in the second half. Jones scored on a 4-point play late in the third quarter making a 3-pointer while being fouled by Sabus. Valor (9-3, 3-0) took a 41-34 lead on the play.

The Eagles pushed the lead to double digits after Sabus picked up her third and four fouls late in the third quarter.

“We just want to take advantage of every opportunity we get,” Jones said of Valor turning it up a notch defensively with Sabus on the bench in the final minute of the third quarter. “We ball pressured them and wanted to add more pressure.”

Valor junior Kate Fuessel was the only other player to reach double-digit points with 11 points. Junior Lauren Fuessel — another one of the Eagles’ triplets — had 9 points and 10 rebounds coming off the bench for the Eagles.

“I thought Lauren Fuessel was a great spark off our bench tonight,” Caldwell said. “She really added some timely finishes at the basket.”

Caldwell also liked how her two freshmen — Grace Marino and Elise Herbeck — did a solid job with the Eagles being shorthanded. Senior Camryn Gunter — leading rebounder and second-leading scorer — was out with an injury. Caldwell said that Gunter will be back, but there is no timetable for her return.

“Our league is continuing to get stronger. We’ve got some really good teams in the top-15 of state (6A),” Caldwell said of 6A Jeffco. “It is really important to come out every single night.”

Valor has won 29 straight games in conference play. The Eagles’ last league loss was Feb. 1, 2023 against Arvada West.

“It’s just one win at a time. One game at a time,” Jones said of the 29-game winning streak in conference play. 

Ralston Valley will get a second shot against Valor. The second go-around between Jones and Sabus will be Feb. 10 on the Eagles’ home court in Highlands Ranch.

“She (Sabus) is a great player and just a great person,” Jones said. “It’s fun to play against really good competition, especially in Colorado.”

Sabus believes the Mustangs have the tools to end Valor’s winning streak in Jeffco next month.

“I think we always have a shot. We are a really good team,” Sabus said facing Valor, who have won seven straight Jeffco League titles. “We are really confident in ourselves every night to go out and win games.”