(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
COLORADO SPRINGS — The Sierra Stallions have all the characteristic of a massive lightning storm. Early in their games the clouds begin to gather and once they reach a certain point, the resulting spectacle is both awesome and terrifying.
The Falcon Falcons didn’t just witness the storm Saturday night. They got caught in the middle without an umbrella. The result was a 60-44 win for the Stallions who move on to the Class 4A Great 8, where they will host Pueblo South next week.
“It’s energy. It’s positive energy and a high level of effort,” Sierra coach Terry Dunn said. “I thought we did a great job of sharing the ball tonight. Falcon’s a good team. We knew we were going to be in a dog fight.”
Like they have been so many times this season, the Stallions were paced on the offensive side of the ball by senior guard TeVion Thompson. He scored nine of his game-high 23 points in the first quarter and helped his team jump out to a 20-14 lead.
But the Falcons were able to adjust defensively and didn’t allow a single Sierra player to score more than one field goal in the second quarter.
Sierra guard C.J. Jenning (4) looks for an open teammate during the first half of Saturday’s win over Falcon. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow)
“Tonight I think we came out really flat to start the game,” Falcon coach Mark Watley said. “We were always kind of playing on our heels and that’s tough to do against this team, especially.”
The teams went into halftime with Sierra in control 32-20 and both came out looking to grasp the second half momentum early. The Falcons appeared to have something working, outscoring the Stallions 8-5 early.
But on one play, the gym erupted in favor of Sierra and the team found a swagger that showed the home crowd that they wouldn’t be denied the victory.
Up 37-28, sophomore guard C.J. Jenning drove to the basket and while attempting his shot, was fouled. His entire body began to fall backwards and while almost parallel to the floor, he managed to heave the ball toward the basket. The shot fell. He made the ensuing free throw. And from that moment on, Flacon never stood a chance.
Thompson continued to dominate offensively and the Stallions never let Falcon get comfortable when they were controlling the ball. The end result of the storm was a team win and the opportunity to play next week.
“Once we start playing as a team, we’re very hard to stop,” Thompson said. “There’s no stopping us, really.”
Although the Falcons were hoping to advance to Great 8, they’re not discounting their success this season and the standard they hope they have created for the future.
“We talked at the beginning of the year about culture,” Watley said. “We didn’t want to be that program that nobody respects. This team fought. We beat five top-10 teams this year and that’s never been done in Falcon history. We never made it to the Sweet 16.”
Next up for the Stallions is a Great 8 matchup with Pueblo South. Because Pueblo South beat the No. 1 seeded Holy Family, that game will take place at Sierra High School on Saturday.