(Brock Laue)
LOVELAND — The Caliche girls basketball team, the No. 1 seed in the Class 1A state tournament, has lived by a quote by the greatest baseball player in history this season.
Babe Ruth once said, “It’s hard to beat a team that never gives up.” The Buffaloes embodied that mindset this season and it’s led them all the way to the state championship game after a 54-36 semifinal victory over Briggsdale on Friday evening.
The game was a rematch of a contest on Jan. 25.
Caliche won that one 49-42, a game the Falcons controlled the tempo in. Similarly, Briggsdale slowed the game down Friday night and took Caliche out of what they do best, push the pace and score in transition.
“That’s what they did earlier this year when we played them,” junior forward Jessica Taylor said of Briggsdale’s pace.
Caliche led 22-17 in a hard-nosed first half full of defense. The Buffaloes pulled away slowly but surely in a grind it out game with solid free-throw shooting and their great defensive guards forcing numerous turnovers.
Caliche coach David Huss was pleased with his team’s poise in the semifinals.
“I think they did a heck of a job defensively of getting us out of our game,” Huss said about Briggsdale. “The thing that I was happiest with for our girls, even though we weren’t playing the up-tempo pace, we never really got rattled. We maintained that lead all the way through and never allowed them any big runs.”
“They’re a very similar team to us and we battled with them earlier in the season in a very similar game to that,” Huss added. “They’re a well coached team, they’re hard playing, they’ve got good big girls, and they’ve got great guards.”
Huss was the coach last time the girls program at Caliche reached the title game back in 2001 when they finished as state runner-up.
“It’s a good feeling and a great opportunity for our team,” Huss said.
Caliche will seek their fourth state title in girls basketball and their first since 1986 when they take on No. 2 seeded Norwood on Saturday evening at 5:30 p.m.
If the Buffaloes keep displaying the toughness the Great Bambino once talked about, they could earn that 1A crown.
“We use that quote by Babe Ruth all the time,” Huss said. “’It’s hard to beat a team that never gives up.’ That’s kind of our motto and that’s how we play.”
Norwood 53, Eads 32
Norwood held a 14-9 first quarter lead in the first final four game of the night at the Budweiser Events Center and never looked back.
Lucia Vlukova, a talented junior with size and scoring ability, tallied 18 points and Tracee Campbell and Jordan Williams chipped in 11 points each.
Eads will face Briggsdale in the third-place game at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
The Mavericks will look to earn their second girls basketball state title. Their last one came in 1983. Norwood has also been state runner-up twice, 1986 and 2012. They will play Caliche in the title game on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.