Golden Eagles sweep Falcons
FREDERICK >> The leading scorer for Frederick’s girls basketball team was out again Thursday night. The star shooter for its boys team, a week after setting the school record in points, was limited to just one bucket through three quarters.
The Golden Eagles swept Skyline in their ‘Senior Night’ doubleheader anyway.
Following Gabby Jima’s career night for the top-10 girls team, Strojinc found his shooting touch in the fourth quarter for a boys team that started the night on the postseason bubble, helping them erase a big early deficit in a 68-50 win. Jovan Aldana led the Golden Eagles (13-8, 12-4 5A/4A Longs Peak League) with 18 points, further cementing the playoff possibility of a team that returned no starters from last season’s semifinals run.
Zach Burton added 14, and Strojinc, who had 53 in a win last week, scored seven of his 10 in the fourth to put away the Falcons (910, 7-7), who’d beaten them Jan. 16.
Frederick was 27th late Tuesday night in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index, which helps dictate the 32-team Class 5A field. Skyline was 41st. The playoffs begin Feb. 21.
“We’re going to run the table,” Strojinc said with a wide grin when asked about the upcoming postseason.
It’s the kind of confidence he and his team exuded after their less-than-ideal starts.
The Falcons started fast, quickly quieting the fun had by home fans during the senior night festivities between the girls’ and boys’ games. Their defense was suffocating, the deep ball was working, and Andy Erives and Cameren Sanchez combined for a quick 15 points to help put the visitors up 20-4 in the opening minutes.
But it didn’t last long. Strojinc answered with a 3, his only points before the final frame, and the Golden Eagles stormed ahead on an 18-0 run that saw the Falcons go scoreless for a span of 7:33.
Holding onto a six-point lead early in the fourth, Aldana and Strojinc then combined to score 13 straight for the Golden Eagles to push the margin into double figures. They sealed things at the free throw line, going 9 of 10 over the final 1:24.
“When we got down, we knew we were missing bunnies,” Aldana said. “We just said, ‘Look, once we start hitting, we’re going to come back.’ And we did it with hard work and teamwork.”
Skyline coach Bob Olds said the next step for his team, which has made huge strides all season long, is having stronger mental toughness. On this night, he said they had to find a way to win despite a tough whistle. The Golden Eagles had 36 free throws, while the Falcons had just four.
“You got to find a way to play
through that,” Olds said. He noted that three of his starters had three fouls by the second quarter.
Prior to that, Jima had a masterful performance for the 5A No. 8 girls’ team.
Showing precision and continuity — fitting for an aspiring surgical physician assistant — Jima reset her career high in points, scoring 22 as Frederick was again without leadingscorer Zoe Wittler in a 6243 win.
Charlotte Manes had 15 in the loss for the Falcons (3-16, 1-13).
After having 21 in a 37-point win over Niwot Tuesday, Jima brushed off her recent scoring uptick without Wittler on the court, preferring to talk about her teammates and their upcoming playoff prospects.
Said Jima: “At the beginning of the season our one goal was to make it to the (Denver) Coliseum,” which hosts the final eight teams in 6A, 5A and 4A. “So, every game is one step closer to that.”
If the Golden Eagles (156, 12-4) can get there, coach Jake Hansen said it would be their first quarterfinals appearance in at least 25 years. With two games left in their regular season, he thinks his team is “trending” in the right direction.
Hansen, who hopes to have Wittler (12.1 PPG) back by the playoffs, said the focus over the final week will be what it’s been all season: Defense. The Golden Eagles have allowed 50 points or fewer in 10 of their last 12 games — losses to 5A No. 1 Roosevelt and 4A No. 3 Riverdale Ridge being the exception.
“We’ve kind of got where we are because of our defense,” Hansen said. “Good defense for us turns into easy offense for us. We had a lot of shooting woes midyear, but our defense saved us. So that’s been our main focus.”
Frederick faces Thompson Valley Tuesday, with the girls at home and boys