The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Natalie Bowen brings extra punch to team
Momentum can be gained in the most random of ways. For the Lady Titans, it took a tough loss at home to Del Norte before they gained confidence and rolled through their next two opponents to rattle off two straight wins over the weekend.
The Del Norte game was going to be a tough for the Lady Titans regardless and even more so since the Lady Titans would be missing starting senior Natalie Bowen. As a result, coach MaryMike Haley had no other choice but to start three sophomores against the notoriously tough Del Norte Lady Tigers.
Del Norte looked to apply immediate pressure on the young Lady Titans team, opening with a full court press. Junior Maddie Stichter and senior Toni Brown led their team through the opening minutes of pressure and the team looked intact, breaking the Lady Tigers press with relative ease.
But, as time wore on in the first quarter, confusion ensued among the Lady Titans on offense. And, ultimately, when chaos ensues, turnovers are soon to follow. Del Norte erupted for a 20-6 run to close the first half ahead 30-10.
“My team was frazzled by their defense,” admits Haley.
Coming out of halftime, the Lady Titans had two choices: fold and get destroyed or do whatever it would take to stay competitive.
The Lady Titans chose the latter, led by the upperclassmen and supported by a feisty crew of sophomores who bring a new level of intensity to the Lady Titans team.
Sophomore Shannon Costello scored six points in the third quarter alone and sophomore Monika Olesen was rabid chasing down loose balls up and down the court and playing stout defense, both on the perimeter and in the paint.
As a result Del Norte only outscored the Lady Titans 12-9 in the third quarter but with a 23-point lead, the Del Norte coach put the non-starters on the court to finish the game.
The Lady Titans put the screws to the Del Norte non-starters, forcing the Lady Tigers coach to turn back to the starting five to finish the game, handing Crested Butte a 51-30 loss.
Regardless of the final score, Crested Butte finished the game on a high note, outscoring Del Norte 21-20 in the second half and taking the momentum into their next two games.
Costello led the team with 15 points, followed by Stichter who scored 11.
“It was actually good,” says Haley. “It gave us momentum for the rest of the weekend.”
Crested Butte lined up Friday night in Mt. Olympus with Bowen back in the line-up and fired up to treat their hometown fans, and themselves, to a win.
Defense, and early points from Bowen, led the Lady Titans to an 8-4 lead after the first quarter of play.
Center clamped down on defense but the Lady Titans adjusted and carried their four-point lead into halftime.
Stichter took over for the Lady Titans in the third quarter with a couple of steals, three assists and four points as the Lady Titans outscored Center 12-3 to build a 26-13 lead by the fourth quarter.
Costello put the finishing touches on the win, scoring six points down the stretch to ice the 37-24 Lady Titans win. Costello led the team with 13 points on the night, followed by Bowen, who dropped in nine. Sophomore Suzanna Dumas continues to figure out her role at the post, scoring five.
“Shannon had a great weekend and I was really proud of her,” says Haley. “The whole team was able to put together four quarters and that’s what we’ve been focusing on, consistency. We were definitely playing with more confidence.”
The confidence carried over to their final game of the weekend on Saturday against Lake County in Leadville as the Lady Titans rolled to a 49-20 win.
Bowen was on fire in Leadville, leading the team with 17 points. The rest of the scoring was shared among several players as Costello scored 12, Dumas nine, and Brown five.
“Lake County went really well,” says Haley. “We’re starting to play as a team, which is really exciting.”
Crested Butte will have their hands full this weekend, and for the rest of the season for that matter. They hit the road to play Sargent on Friday and then return to Mt. Olympus on Saturday, January 14 to host Cripple Creek. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
“I think it’s going to be a tough run,” says Haley. “It’s a tough league, including last year’s 2A state champs. My hope is that we stay consistent and are competitive.”
