One could almost see Telluride Head Coach Jose Orellana fearing the worst Tuesday evening while watching his most capable regular, senior point guard Whitney Wells, struggling to catch her breath while gingerly rising up following a knee-to-knee knock with Ignacio senior Alejandra Lujan.
Adding insult to fortunately-not-serious-injury, Lujan then coasted down three-quarters of the MinerDome's court to convert a relatively easy layup before play was paused with 4:20 left in the third quarter. The game ended in a 44-16 IHS rout in 2A/1A San Juan Basin League play.
Ignacio's two games last weekend were both postponed by a snowstorm, "so we had to work and work to get ready for this game," freshman Morgan Herrera stated.
Having previously seen 3A Bayfield struggle at home for a half against the Miners when Telluride came to play the Wolverines, the Bobcats (4-2, 3-0 SJBL) made certain early on that anything resembling a close game would not develop.
A late three-pointer by sophomore guard Kiana Valdez put Ignacio up 10-2 after eight minutes, and junior point guard Avionne Gomez's second trey of the game increased the lead to 17-2 before THS managed a slight spark with baskets by Wells, sophomore Sierra Shambaugh and senior Alyssa Pack.
Though visibly appearing under the weather during and after the contest, Herrera extinguished it by putting in a close-range basket with only three seconds left before halftime. IHS' 21-8 advantage grew to 33-9 by the third quarter's close as Herrera booked six points and Lujan four, despite both working inside amidst the height of Pack and sophomore Jessica Pack.
Telluride's Wells did eventually return to action during the final frame, making all four of her free throws and sinking one last two-pointer to finish with a team-high 10 points (she'd put 22 on Bayfield).
But with Valdez and Gomez each striking once more from long distance and Herrera going inside for one last hoop, the 'Cats easily completed their weather-delayed bounce-back from their Jan. 10 wild 57-55 loss at BHS.
"I'm still out of shape," said a recovering Herrera. Even playing with an illness, she had a 15-point season debut against the Wolverines with a game-high 14 against Telluride. "I mean, I work my butt off in practice, but I feel good 'out there' again. The team's pushing me to my limits."
Gomez totaled nine points on three triples, and Valdez finished with six on her two. Filling the role of injured freshman regular Makayla Howell, senior Rachel Cooper was given the start and responded with six points.
Shambaugh logged three points for the Miners (2-7, 2-3), while Alyssa Pack scored two and sophomore Quinn Beere one during her unplanned stint playing for Wells.
Ignacio hosted 2A Sargent (5-3) on Thursday evening, and Norwood comes to IHS on Saturday afternoon. The Bobcats travel to Mancos on Tuesday, Jan. 24.
