Gilpin teams take losses to Lake County
by Patty Unruh
Gilpin High School’s varsity boys and girls basketball teams hosted the South Park Burros (Fairplay) on Friday, December 14 in non-league play. The boys triumphed with a 46-35 win over their opponents, while the girls were handed a tough 49-20 loss.
The squads traveled to Lake County (Leadville) the next day, December 15, for a non-league contest with the Panthers. Gilpin boys suffered a 62-54 loss, which gives them a 2-3 record thus far. The Eagle girls came in with a 52-32 loss to Lake County and now have a 1-4 record.
Gilpin hopes to improve on these records when they visit Estes Park this week on December 20. Then they have a break until January 8, when they host Lyons.
Eagle Boys v. Burros
South Park has played a few more games than Gilpin. Their boys have 7 wins under their belts, with the loss to Gilpin their only one so far.
The game at Gilpin on December 14 began slowly, with the score standing at just 6-4 South Park at the end of the first quarter. The Eagles began a press early in the second quarter, with #23 Vernon Carter tying the score at 8-8. A South Park free throw nudged the score to 9-8, but a 3-point field goal by Gilpin’s #20 Will Lorenz put the Eagles over the top 11-9. The players gave their fans an exciting time, as the lead went back and forth several times in quick succession. The Eagles were down by one, 18-17, at halftime.
The Gilpin Eagles cheerleaders pepped up the crowd with a snappy routine. The cheer squad participated in the state cheer competition in Denver on December 7 and 8, coming in seventh in the state. The Weekly Register-Call will be featuring the cheerleaders in an upcoming issue.
Hard work by the Eagles in the third quarter made the difference. Gilpin forged ahead early with a 3-pointer by Lorenz. Carter, #24 Nolan Lindberg, and #11 Alex Wilhelm quickly added 6 points to the board. #4 Stephen King was fouled and marched to the free throw line to add another 2, then put in 3-point and 2–point field goals for good measure. Additional points were added by Lorenz and Lindberg, and the score stood at 35-23 Gilpin going into the fourth period.
The fourth quarter was a pretty even contest, with South Park mustering 12 points and Gilpin 11. The Burros were not able to close the gap, however, and the Eagles happily accepted their second season win.
Gilpin Girls Lose to South Park
The Gilpin girls were not as fortunate as their counterparts in the game with South Park last week, taking a disappointing loss.
The first quarter went relatively well for Gilpin, with #20 Alicia Johnson swishing in 2 free throws and Lena Warren exciting the crowd with a 3-point field goal. #34 Elizabeth Hebert contributed 2 points as well, to bring the score to 8-7 South Park going into the second period. Johnson tied the score 8-8 with a free throw and then added a 2-pointer to help the Eagles gain a 10-8 lead. The Burros tied it up with a field goal, but Gilpin scored again to bring it to 12-10. That was the last lead for the Eagles. The first half continued close, though, ending at 17-16 Burros. The second half was all South Park, which scored 32 points while Gilpin struggled with errors and getting to the basket and managed just 4 points.