Lady Cowboys play in “Sweet 16”

phmkgirls story — The Meeker girls basketball team: coach Deb Henderson, Chanler May, Piper Haney, Kaysyn Chintala, Jordan Brown, Bailey Atwood, Aly Ridings, Kathryn Doll, Aubrey Walsh, Taylor Neilson, Becca de Vergie and Laura Glass, finished second in the Region 4 tournament last weekend.

MEEKER I Friday night at Standley Lake High School in Westminster the Meeker girls defeated the Peyton Panthers to play a 2A state qualifier game on Saturday against the Holyoke Dragons.

Peyton had a five point lead in the first three minutes of the game before sophomore Kaysyn Chintala drained a three to open up the basket. Soon after, senior Rebecca de Vergie powered up an offensive rebound to tie the game at five. The score see-sawed as the Panthers hit two buckets and three 3-pointers while freshman Aly Ridings dumped in four shots in a row and junior Kathryn Doll dropped in a bucket to end the first quarter 15-18.

Both teams tightened up their defense in the second quarter with Meeker allowing Peyton only 8 points while the Lady Cowboys scored 10. Chintala started the quarter with another three, deVergie drove in two more layups, sophomore Bailey Atwood hit a two and Ridings sunk one foul shot. Peyton led 26-25 at the half.

Both teams came out hot with Peyton scoring 18 to Meeker’s 17 in the third. Within five seconds Chintala hit a jumper at the baseline and a quick steal turned into a layup for de Vergie. Senior Laura Glass and Ridings both made two foul shots, Doll and Atwood both had buckets with a free throw and Chintala drained her third 3-pointer of the night with six seconds left on the clock, 44-42 Peyton.

With three minutes left in the fourth quarter, both teams were in the double bonus with a close score of 59-58 Panthers. First Meeker fouled and the Panthers took a three point lead. Then Peyton fouled four times in a row sending Ridings to the line twice, de Vergie and Doll to the line once each. The three girls sank every shot to lead by five, 61-66. The last foul was the fourth personal foul on Peyton’s 6-foot-1 senior center, Samantha Patterson, who slammed the ball down hard enough to earn a technical foul which sent her off the floor for the game. Ridings made one of the technical shots and Meeker had the ball. Two fouls from Meeker put three points on the Panther’s board, but with only one minute left in the game, Peyton had to foul to stop the clock. Freshman Taylor Neilson sunk four free throws and Ridings drained two more on her seventh trip to the line for the night. The Panthers snuck in one more bucket closing the game out at 66-73 Meeker. Overall, Ridings scored 20, deVergie 18, Chintala 11, Doll and Atwood each had seven while Neilson added six and Glass four.

In the “Sweet 16” portion of the state tournament on Saturday, the Lady Cowboys met up with the Holyoke Dragons. With four minutes already gone Meeker’s shots wouldn’t fall; the basket was sealed shut. A Peyton foul on Ridings sent her to the line where she swished two for the only Meeker points on the board the first quarter. The Dragons led 8-2.

Before long Holyoke led 14-4 in the second quarter. Finally, Chintala hit two jump shots, Ridings sunk two shots and Neilson drained a three to bring the Cowboys within one. Holyoke quickly answered with two shots right before the half, 18-13.

Meeker made their trademark third quarter spark with tough defense and Neilson and Ridings teaming up to put 19 points on the board. With two minutes left Meeker led by five, but a couple costly turnovers in the last minute brought the Dragons back in the lead 35-32.

Immediately, Holyoke fired up six points to gain a nine point lead in the fourth. Meeker fought back as Glass, Doll, Ridings and de Vergie all made a bucket to almost tie it up. Holyoke lead 41-40 with four minutes left and Meeker fouled to put the Dragons in the bonus. Down 46-40 with 40 seconds left, the Lady Cowboys couldn’t buy a bucket and soon found themselves fouling to stop the clock. Holyoke capitalized on the foul shots scoring six more points while Meeker’s Glass added one more bucket. Holyoke won the game 52-42.

The Lady Cowboys fought hard to earn second place in the region as a 2A state qualifier. These young ladies have faced many challenges and made the best of some difficult circumstances this year. Coach Deb Henderson couldn’t say enough about the Lady Cowboys when she stated that, “We had a roller coaster season and in the end the girls persevered and really worked hard to make themselves better. They worked as a team for post season play. They showed that at districts and regionals. I am really proud of them.” Congratulations on a great season!

By BECCA NIELSENSpecial to the Herald TimesMEEKER I Friday night at Standley Lake High School in Westminster the Meeker girls defeated the Peyton Panthers to play a 2A state qualifier game on Saturday against the Holyoke Dragons. Peyton had a five point lead in the first three minutes of the game before sophomore Kaysyn Chintala drained a three to open up the basket. Soon after, senior Rebecca de Vergie powered up an offensive rebound to tie the game at five. The score see-sawed as the Panthers hit two buckets and three 3-pointers while freshman Aly Ridings dumped in four shots in a row and junior Kathryn Doll dropped in a bucket to end the first quarter 15-18. Both teams tightened up their defense in the second quarter with Meeker allowing Peyton only 8 points while the Lady Cowboys scored 10. Chintala started the quarter with another three, deVergie drove in two more layups, sophomore Bailey Atwood hit a two and Ridings sunk one foul shot. Peyton led 26-25 at the half.Both teams came out hot with Peyton scoring 18 to Meeker’s 17 in the third. Within five seconds Chintala hit a jumper at the baseline and a quick steal turned into a layup for de Vergie. Senior Laura Glass and Ridings both made two foul shots, Doll and Atwood both had buckets with a free throw and Chintala drained her third 3-pointer of the night with six seconds left on the clock, 44-42 Peyton.With three minutes left in the fourth quarter, both teams were in the double bonus with a close score of 59-58 Panthers. First Meeker fouled and the Panthers took a three point lead. Then Peyton fouled four times in a row sending Ridings to the line twice, de Vergie and Doll to the line once each. The three girls sank every shot to lead by five, 61-66. The last foul was the fourth personal foul on Peyton’s 6-foot-1 senior center, Samantha Patterson, who slammed the ball down hard enough to earn a technical foul which sent her off the floor for the game. Ridings made one of the technical shots and Meeker had the ball. Two fouls from Meeker put three points on the Panther’s board, but with only one minute left in the game, Peyton had to foul to stop the clock. Freshman Taylor Neilson sunk four free throws and Ridings drained two more on her seventh trip to the line for the night. The Panthers snuck in one more bucket closing the game out at 66-73 Meeker. Overall, Ridings scored 20, deVergie 18, Chintala 11, Doll and Atwood each had seven while Neilson added six and Glass four.In the “Sweet 16” portion of the state tournament on Saturday, the Lady Cowboys met up with the Holyoke Dragons. With four minutes already gone Meeker’s shots wouldn’t fall; the basket was sealed shut. A Peyton foul on Ridings sent her to the line where she swished two for the only Meeker points on the board the first quarter. The Dragons led 8-2.Before long Holyoke led 14-4 in the second quarter. Finally, Chintala hit two jump shots, Ridings sunk two shots and Neilson drained a three to bring the Cowboys within one. Holyoke quickly answered with two shots right before the half, 18-13.Meeker made their trademark third quarter spark with tough defense and Neilson and Ridings teaming up to put 19 points on the board. With two minutes left Meeker led by five, but a couple costly turnovers in the last minute brought the Dragons back in the lead 35-32.Immediately, Holyoke fired up six points to gain a nine point lead in the fourth. Meeker fought back as Glass, Doll, Ridings and de Vergie all made a bucket to almost tie it up. Holyoke lead 41-40 with four minutes left and Meeker fouled to put the Dragons in the bonus. Down 46-40 with 40 seconds left, the Lady Cowboys couldn’t buy a bucket and soon found themselves fouling to stop the clock. Holyoke capitalized on the foul shots scoring six more points while Meeker’s Glass added one more bucket. Holyoke won the game 52-42. The Lady Cowboys fought hard to earn second place in the region as a 2A state qualifier. These young ladies have faced many challenges and made the best of some difficult circumstances this year. Coach Deb Henderson couldn’t say enough about the Lady Cowboys when she stated that, “We had a roller coaster season and in the end the girls persevered and really worked hard to make themselves better. They worked as a team for post season play. They showed that at districts and regionals. I am really proud of them.” Congratulations on a great season!

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