VHS Weekend Wrap-Up – February 25, 2019

Thursday night, we played Delta. We did a great job on defense holding them to only 4 points in the first half. Delta came out strong scoring 11 of their 14 points in the third quarter. We were able to keep them from scoring in the fourth quarter. The Lady Bucs were lead in scoring by Lily Alfaro and Kylie Fletcher-Gilbert each scoring 8 points.

Friday night, we played our first of two games with Hutchison. We had a slow start to the game with only scoring two points in the first quarter, which made us down 2-7 in the first. The Lady Bucs fought back and tied the score at 14 by half-time. We came out strong in the second half out scoring Hutch 18-11 in the second half. Marianne Prax led the Lady Bucs in scoring with 12 points.

Friday morning, we played our last game of the JV Girls’ season. The Lady Bucs played a strong and consistent game. Our tough defense kept the Hawks to only 14 points. The Lady Bucs handled and moved the ball well, with very few turnovers. It was one of our best played games of the season. The Lady Bucs were led in scoring by Rylie King with 11 points, Marianne Prax with 10, and Ambrosia Woodgate with 9 points.

Coaches Comments:

“This weekend we wrapped up our JV Girls Basketball season. It was a great way to end the  season with three wins over the weekend. We ended the season with a 9 and 5 record, winning our last eight games straight. I am very proud of the growth our girls have made both as players and as a team. It was a very fun and exciting season. I am honored to have been able to coach such a hardworking and nice group of young ladies.”

The Varsity girls played at Delta on Thursday night, and overcame a long bus ride, and slow start, to come away with a 54-39 win.  The Lady Bucs started slow, but were able to slowly take control of the game over the final three quarters.  The Lady Bucs were led by Jade Watts with 15 points and Reese King with 11 points.

The Lady Bucs played the Hutchison Hawks Friday night in a key Aurora conference matchup.  Valdez rode a solid defense performance to a 47-40 overtime win.  The Lady Bucs played one of their best defensive halves of the season, holding the  Hawks to 11 points.  The Bucs outscored the Hawks 12-5 in the overtime period to secure the win.

Despite a late rally, the Lady Bucs could not overcome a poor offensive performance and foul trouble, and fell 38-47 to Hutchison on Saturday.  Valdez was just a step slow from the start, and the Hawks were able to take advantage of early foul trouble that plagued the Bucs in route to an 11 point halftime lead.  Despite being down by 11 to start the 4th, the Bucs cut the deficit to 4 with about 3 minutes to play.  However, they could not get over the hump, and suffered their first Aurora conference loss of the season.  The Lady Bucs were led by Jade Watts with 11 points, and Jade Holmes with 10 points.

“I was really proud of how the girls competed this weekend.  Thursday they overcame a long bus ride and slow start to pull away… and Friday we played really well on the defensive end against a very good Hutchison team.  Saturday, we just could not overcome the slow start, but the girls really worked to give themselves a chance.  Our conference this year is one of the better one’s in 3A, with multiple really good teams. It was our first conference loss, and hopefully we can respond and play well next weekend in Galena.  The regional tournament should be a lot of fun in two weeks.  I like where we are as a team, and I feel like we have improved a great deal throughout the season, despite not playing as well as we would have liked on Saturday.”

On Friday, we played a tight contest with Hutchison. Coming back from a 7 point deficit, we ended the regulation play tied at 39. Both teams found it difficult to score in the overtime period. With 1 minute left to play, each team had only scored one field goal each. 2 quick and curious fouls sent Hutchison to the line for a bonus 1-1 free throw. Making the front end, they missed the second attempt but grabbed the rebound. Hutch controlled the ball for 40 seconds before we forced an error and recovered the ball. Quickly bringing the ball to our side of the court, we took a time out and reviewed our sideline out-of-bounds play for this situation. With a great pass from Storm Rohrer to Moe Morgan, we scored with just a few seconds left and were able to hold on for the lead.

Saturday, however, was not as fortuitous. Only shooting 23% from the field, we quickly fell behind in the first quarter and never recovered. The final score was 27-58.

Thursday saw the Buccaneers travel to Delta Junction to begin a 3-day, 3-game Aurora Conference road swing that included one game against Delta, followed by two against the Hutchison Hawks.

From the tip-off, the Delta Huskies thoroughly outplayed the Bucs, who provided a lackluster effort and played sloppy, uninspired, and undisciplined basketball.  Delta outrebounded the Buccaneers, had fewer turnovers, and shot better from the FT line, 3-point line, and the field. Dominated on both sides of the ball, the Buccaneers incurred a 65-54 defeat, dropping them to 3-2 in Aurora Conference play.

The Bucs were led offensively by Logan Heckathorn (17 points) and Kyler LaBonte (13).  Kyler LaBonte also successfully drew an offensive foul.

On Friday the Bucs traveled to Fairbanks to start a 2-game tilt against the Hutchison Hawks.  The Bucs responded to their loss, and certain challenges from the coaching staff, and took control of the game early – leading 17-5 after the 1st quarter, and 25-10 at half-time.  The Buccaneer offense came to life in the 3rd quarter, registering 26 points while holding the Hawks to 8 – amounting to a 51-18 lead going into the 4th quarter, and an eventual 54-29 victory.

The Buccaneers out-rebounded the Hawks by an impressive margin of 26 rebounds (41 to 15), led by Douglas Cummins with 7 rebounds.  The Bucs were led offensively by Bennett Hinkle (15 points, 5 assists) and Kyler LaBonte (11 points). The Buccaneer defense held the Hawks to 24% shooting (11-45), including 5-for-27 (18%) from the 3-point line.

All 12 rostered Buccaneers registered playing time and contributed to a statistical category.

Saturday afternoon’s rematch began much differently than the previous night, with the Hawks exceeding their Friday first half total by jumping out to an 12-8 lead after the first quarter.  In the 2nd quarter the Bucs ramped up their ¾ quart pressure defense and catapulted to a 33-18 half-time lead. The 3rd quarter featured much of the same, as the Bucs outscored the Hawks 22-6 – establishing an 57-25 advantage heading into the 4th quarter en route to an eventual 72-39 victory.

The Buccaneers once again drastically out-rebounded the Hawks (36-19), and held Hutchison to 13-for-48 shooting (27%) from the field.  Ike Watson and Moe Morgan each successfully drew an offensive foul. The Bucs were led offensively by Ike Watson (15 points, 12 rebounds), Logan Heckathorn (14 points, 5 assists), Jalen Freeman (13 points), and Kyler LaBonte (12 points).

All 12 rostered players once again registered playing time and contributed to a statistical category.

The Buccaneer 2018-2019 regular season comes to a close this coming weekend, with the Bucs once again taking to the road to battle Aurora Conference foes.  Thursday’s contest will provide an opportunity for a bit of redemption as the Bucs battle the Huskies in Delta. Friday and Saturday will feature the Bucs vs. the Galena Hawks as the boys complete their bi-annual travel to Galena.