2012 CCGS All-State Basketball Games recaps

Here are recaps of the Colorado Coaches of Girls Sports All-State Basketball Games. Box scores are at the bottom.

Class 5A
Blue 98, Red 73

It was run-and-gun from the start in the Class 5A game at Arvada West with Michaela Neuhaus of Highlands Ranch and Elika Posey of Fountain-Fort Carson leading the way for the victorious Blue squad.

The Blue, coached by Jerry Knafelc of Arapahoe and Tim Slabach of Arvada West, tallied 49 points in each half to come through with its 98-73 victory over the Red squad of coach Ron Burgin of Standley Lake.

Neuhaus scored a game high 24 points followed by a 20 point effort from Posey, who led the game in 3-point baskets with four.

The Blue tallied its 98th point with 45 seconds left and it was evident the players were trying to make the century mark. However, even after a pair of steals from the Red squad, they couldn't connect, throwing the ball out of bounds on two quick trips up the court. All a couple of players could do at the end was snap their fingers in fun at not connecting.

"Basically we gelled and we had fun," said Posey, who could be headed for the University of Denver in the Fall. "We came out to win. The key was to play the game hard and get to know each other quickly in the short time we have together. I think we accomplished that. It was just a great weekend, fun for all of us."

Overland's Simone Evans led the way for the Red team, also accounting for 20 points.

"Just playing with a lot of different girls from areas I haven't been to is such a fine opportunity for all of us," said Evans, who scored 14 of her points in the second half. "You want to have fun with this talent, play hard and look back at an experience you can remember for a long time."

In all, six of the seven players for the Blue team scored in double figures, with Amanda Martinez of Arapahoe close behind with 15.

Class 4A
Red 76, Blue 69

Pueblo West's Dee Arrieta felt her Red team got off to a quick start in the first half of her squad's victory. The Blue zipped out to a 44-33 halftime lead, but nearly saw the advantage slip away as the Red team closed the game to only a couple of baskets during spurts in the second half.

However, the Red, coached by D'Evelyn's Chris Olsen, held on down the stretch to garner the win over the Blue, coached by Dan Foster of Silver Creek.

"I wouldn't trade this for anything," said Arrieta, who led the Red with 18 points, an effort that included a pair of 3-point baskets. "They came back on us, but we held on. The key was just everyone working together, not bad when we only have a short time to work together in the first place. We were passing the ball, and making the stops when we had to."

Madalyn Neely of D'Evelyn and Gabby Ramirez of Roosevelt each scored 15 points to help the Red to its victory.

Falcon's Janniqua Thomas led the Blue with 20 points while Amanda Weber of Cheyenne Mountain chipped in with 13 points and Maurissa Ortega of Centaurus adding 12 more.

"It didn't seem that we came out and played hard in the first few minutes and that got us behind," Thomas said. "But we came together as a team and played hard the rest of the way."

Added Weber, "I just love every minute of it, especially since we were all able to play in our own school uniforms. Not knowing each other, we still came together as a team."

Class 3A
Red 60, Blue 53

Britney Warren of Florence was beginning to wonder if her Red team, coached by George Dasko of Trinidad, was going to get everything together. But she put those thoughts out of her mind in helping to pace the Red to a victory.

Warren only scored five points in the first half, a basket and three free throws. But she tallied 15 in the second half to get back in her game. And, after trailing 32-22 after 20 minutes of play, it was time to get down to work.

"It was just a great day," Warren said. "We were down, but not having played with each other before we had to realize what each of us could do. We needed to find everyone on the court. After we figured our what everyone's game was like, we came together. It was frustrating being down, but we came together as a team and did it. Basketball has always been my No. 1 sport and without basketball I don't know what I would do."

Kylie Tait from Olathe and her Olathe teammate Tawni Middleton, scored 15 and 11 points each, respectively, to help the Red team's cause.

And it didn't help the Blue, coached by Ellie Kempfe of Machebeuf, as the squad hit a drought in the second half, scoring only 21 points. Shots seemed to go array from just about every position on the court. Kassie Johannsen of Holy Family was the only player for the Blue to score in double figures with 16.

"It was so fun, just a great feeling that I will always remember," said Johanssen, headed for the University of South Carolina in the Fall. "But things kind of fell apart. Still, it was fun playing with all the girls and I certainly wish all of them well."

Class 2A
Red 82, Blue 70

Burlington's Ori Swiatkowski will certainly have a warm feeling when she looks back on her final basketball game. In a closing curtain game of her basketball career, she scored a team-high 25 points.

Sixteen of Swiatkowski's points came in the second half and she said it was a sweet feeling.

"I just really wanted to go out and have fun as this was my last high school game," Swiatkowski said. "I'm going to Colorado State University, but I'm not going to play in college. It's fun playing with everyone who is so talented and almost effortless to be playing with girls like this. It's something to always remember."

Limon's Anna Ashcraft and Resurrection Christian's Courtney Peterson each chipped in with 17 points for the winners. Peterson, by the way, was playing her final high school game for her dad, Scott Peterson.

Laura Beckman of Julesburg was the high-point scorer for the Blue team, scoring a game-high 26 points in the losing effort. But, it was far from losing for Beckman.

"It was just a really fun game to play with all the different girls and I thought our team did really well," Beckman said. "We just couldn't buy a basket in the second half. I didn't play well at that point, but my team was helping, driving and dishing the ball out a lot. It's a privilege to be on a team like this."

The Blue, coached by Pete Walter of Julesburg, also received a 13 point effort from Ridgway's Candace Yengst and 12 points from Yuma's Kenzie Bohm.

Class 1A
Blue 75, Red 58

Flager's Jana Elrick couldn't think of a finer way to close out the 2011 prep basketball season. And, it will be a game to remember as she helped pace her Blue team to a win.

Elrick, who was coached by Bryan Dermer of Merino in the All-State clash, scored a team-high 15 points to pace the Blue while Briggsdale's McKaea Pfeiff chipped in with 12 and the Merino combination of Danielle Rinaldo and Malia Michel each added 11.

"I think it is a really big honor and privilege just to play in this game," Elrick said. "All these girls have worked very hard for the opportunity and it's just a huge honor to be recognized. We worked really hard in practice yesterday and went out and got the job done. We played our hearts out and enjoyed it. I think it's awesome to play with these girls who are at your level and they can all react like you can."

The Blue fell way behind after the first half, but was able to rebound in the second. Deer Trail's Bay'lee Purdy helped lead the comeback scoring 16 points to lead the Blue.

"We got into a 20 point deficit and it was catch-up from there," Purdy said. "It doesn't really hurt to lose in a game such as this. It's the friendships on both sides of the ball that make this such a fine weekend. You want to have fun, that's what this game is all about."

Wiley's Desiree Daniels was the second-leading scorer for the Red team with 13 points.


CLASS 5A
BLUE 98, RED 73
BLUE 49 49 -- 98
RED 31 42 -- 73

B -- Skippy Tripp (Dakota Ridge) 3 0-1 6, Shalisa Moffit (Doherty) 2 6-12 11, Michaela Neuhaus (Highlands Ranch) 9 3-4 24, Elika Posey (Fountain-Ft. Carson) 8 0-3 20, Amanda Martinez (Arapahoe) 7 1-1 15, Jalene Novotny (Arvada West) 4 2-4 10, Carrie Christopher (Arvada West) 3 6-6 12. Totals: 36 18-31 98. Three-point baskets: Posey (4), Neuhaus (3), Moffit. Fouls: 16. Fouled out, None.

R -- Woo Bandel (Standley Lake) 2 5-6 9, Jessica Sinner (Fruita-Monument) 4 1-4 11, Simone Evans (Overland) 7 3-5 20, Katie Kerkhoff (Ponderosa) 3 0-0 6, Jessica Ramos (Horizon) 2 0-0 4, Ashton Davis (Monarch) 6 2-4 15, Jessica Milam (Liberty) 4 0-0 8. Totals: 28 11-19 73. Three-point baskets: Evans (3), Sinner (2), Davis. Fouls: 15. Fouled out, None.

Coaches: Red, Ron Burgin, Standley Lake. White, Jerry Knafelc, Arapahoe, Tim Slabach, Arvada West.

Class 4A
RED 76, BLUE 69
BLUE 33 36 -- 69
RED 44 32 -- 76

B -- Holly Carter (Pueblo East) 4 3-6 11, Maurissa Ortega (Centaurus) 5 0-0 12, Meagan Prins (Broomfield) 0 4-6 4, Nikkita Lester (Falcon) 3 0-0 5, Janniqua Thomas (Falcon) 6 5-6 20, Amanda Weber (Cheyenne Mountain) 5 0-0 13, Kauna Kama (Air Academy) 1 0-0 2, Ana Gurau (Silver Creek) 1 0-0 2. Totals: 26 12-18 69. Three-point baskets: Weber (3), Ortega (2), Lester, Thomas. Fouls: 13. Fouled out, None.

R -- Katie Wirth (Wheat Ridge) 2 0-0 4, Hailey Newhall (Evergreen) 1 2-2 4, Madalyn Neely (D'Evelyn) 6 3-4 15, Gabby Ramirez (Roosevelt) 6 2-2 15, DeeAnna Arrieta (Pueblo West) 7 2-2 18, Melissa Camilletti (Moffat County) 2 2-2 6, Kylie Santos (Golden) 2 0-0 6, Annie Sadvar (Moffat County) 2 4-4 8. Totals: 27 15-16 76. Three-point baskets: Arrieta (2), Santos (2), Ramirez. Fouls: 16. Fouled out, None.

Coaches: Red, Chris Olsen, D'Evelyn, Mike Wallahar, D'Evelyn. Blue, Dan Kloster, Silver Creek, George Ramirez, Silver Creek.

Class 3A
RED 60, BLUE 53
BLUE 32 21 -- 53
RED 22 38 -- 60

R -- Stephany Navarette (Trinidad) 1 0-0 3, Bailey Everhart (Aspen) 1 1-6 3, Brittney Warren (Florence) 6 7-9 20, Vanessa Gonzales (Trinidad) 2 0-0 6, Kaylees Schell (Buena Vista) 0 1-2 1, Tawni Middleton (Olathe) 4 2-4 11, Kaylie Tait (Olathe) 6 1-4 15, Evelyn Bangs (Estes Park) 0 1-2 1. Totals: 20 13-31 60

Three-point baskets: Gonzales (2), Tait (2), Navarette, Warren, Middleton. Fouls: 11. Fouled out, None.

B -- Diane Montoya (Machebeuf) 2 0-0 5, Candance Shaw (Bayfield) 2 1-1 6, Megan Chavez (Holy Family) 3 1-2 9, Brooklyn Long (Faith Christian) 2 0-0 5, Brooklyn DuChanne (Pagosa Springs) 1 0-1 2, Alexuis Ramirez (Pinnacle) 1 2-4 4, Kassy Johanssen (Holy Family) 8 0-0 16, Carli Nichols (Brush) 3 0-0 6. Totals: 22 4-8 53. Three-point baskets: Chavez (2), Montoya, Shaw, Long. Fouls: 19. Fouled out, None.

Coach: Red, George Dasko, Trinidad. White, Ellie Kempfe, Machebeuf.

Class 2A
RED 82, BLUE 70
BLUE 32 38 -- 70
RED 40 42 -- 82

B -- Kenzie Bohm (Yuma) 4 2-2 12, Amber Edgar (Sanford) 1 0-0 2, Ashley Campbell (Julesburg) 2 0-0 6, Candace Yengst (Ridgway) 6 1-1 13, Laura Beckman (Julesburg) 7 8-11 26, Laura Gerk (Holyoke) 0 2-2 2, Tori Mortenson (Sanford) 1 2-2 4, Kourtney Stroud (Swink) 2 0-0 5. Totals: 23 15-18 70. Three-point baskets: Beckman (4), Bohm (2), Campbell (2), Stroud. Fouls 18. Fouled out. None.

R -- Hannah Peterson (Resurrection Christian) 2 0-0 4, Mariah Miner (Swink) 0 0-0 0, Oirana Swiatkowski (Burlington) 8 7-14 25, Courtney Peterson (Resurrection Christian) 6 4-6 17, Anna Ashcraft (Limon) 8 1-3 17, Macie Christian (Limon) 3 0-0 6, Danica Shipley (Rye) 4 1-2 9, Breanne Crouse (Burlington) 2 0-1 4. Totals: 33 13-28 82. Three-point baskets: Swiatkowski (2), C. Peterson. Fouls: 11. Fouled out None.

Coaches: White, Scott Peterson, Resurrection Christian; Zach Peterson, Resurrection Christian. Red, Pete Walter, Julesburg.

Class 1A
BLUE 75, RED 58
BLUE 17 58 -- 75
RED 35 23 -- 58

B -- Danielle Rinaldo (Merino) 5 1-1 11, Malia Michel (Merino) 5 1-2 11, Carle Walser (Merino) 3 0-0 9, Samantha Protsman (Simla) 1 0-2 2, Jana Elrick (Flagler) 6 0-0 15, Melissa Navarrette (McClave) 3 2-2 8, Makenna Castor (Community Christian) 2 3-4 7, McKaea Pfeiff (Briggsdale) 4 1-3 12. Totals: 30 8-14 75. Three-point baskets: Walser (3), Elrick (3), Pfeiff. Fouls: 13. Fouled out: Michel.

R -- Jaci Digby (Simla) 3 0-0 8, Taylin Spitzer (Wiley) 3 0-0 6, Kati Kuntz (Otis) 1 0-0 2, Shandy Winters (Kim) 3 0-0 9, Bay'lee Purdy (Deer Trail) 4 7-8 16, Desiree Daniels (Wiley) 5 3-4 13, Aubrie Konkel (Springfield) 1 0-0 2, Mikayla Franek (Elbert) 1 0-2 2. Totals: 21 10-14 58. Three-point baskets: Winters (3), Digby (2), Purdy. Fouls: 14. Fouled out: None.

Coaches: Red, Rebecca Tomlin, Elbert; Andy Schafer, Elbert. White, Bryan Dermer, Merino.

Recaps are courtesy of Scott Stocker. He may be reached at Sidelines1971@gmail.com.