Craig Daily Press / Fighting complacency

Girls basketball team to host two teams with total of two league wins

Ariel Sanchez, left, and Jorgiea Raftopoulos clamp down defensively against a Rifle player two weeks ago. The girls basketball team hosts Battle Mountain today, followed by a Saturday match-up with visiting Eagle Valley. Enlarge photo — Photo by Hans Hallgren

By John Vandelinder

January 25, 2008

What: MCHS girls basketball vs. Battle Mountain

When: 6 p.m. today

Where: Moffat County High School

Call: 970-824-7036

What: MCHS girls basketball vs. Eagle Valley

When: 4 p.m. Saturday

Where: Moffat County High School

Call: 970-824-7036

Bulldogs

Coach: Craig Mortensen

Record: 11-3 overall, 4-1 Western Slope League

PPG: 60.7

Opposition: 38.4

Leading scorer: Angie Charchalis 17.5 ppg

Keys to victory

• Mental focus. The Bulldogs have more wins than Battle Mountain and Eagle Valley combined. Mortensen said the Bulldogs should win, and win big, but the team has to play as though they are playing a team better than they are.

• Defense. Everything MCHS does starts with defense, and Mortensen said this week is no different.

• Avoiding bad habits. With a 30-point lead, bad habits don’t hurt. Mortensen said his team needs to shy away from them and not play down to its opposition.

Battle Mountain

Coach: Andrew Schmidt

Record: 3-9 overall, 1-3 Western Slope League

PPG: 33.4

Opposition: 52.5

Leading scorer: Emily LyBarger 10.1 ppg

Eagle Valley

Coach: Ken Reagan

Record: 2-10 overall, 1-4 Western Slope League

PPG: 36.3

Opposition: 52.9

Leading scorer: N/A

Craig — Sometimes, it’s hard at the top.

At least, that what Moffat County girls basketball coach Craig Mortensen thinks.

“It’s going to be tough this weekend for us,” Mortensen said. “We are just plain better than the teams we are going to face this weekend.”

The Bulldogs (11-3, 4-1 Western Slope League) host Battle Mountain (3-9, 1-3 WSL) today, followed by a visit from Eagle Valley (2-10, 1-4 WSL) on Saturday.

Moffat County is coming off its highest offensive output of the season — 83 points at Delta — while the Huskies and Devils enter on four-game losing streaks.

The Bulldogs average almost as many points per game as the two teams combined.

“We have to try to make progress against two teams that won’t really challenge us, Mortensen said. “We have to stay away from bad habits when we play teams of their caliber and still try to get better.”

Mortensen gave the team Tuesday off, but he wrapped some tough practices around the break as well as utilizing some old game film as motivation.

“We watched some postseason game film of previous years on Monday,” Mortensen said. “I wanted them to see what we looked like when we lost so they won’t be complacent this weekend. They realized that they need to be mentally focused and not slip up.”

Mortensen said he’s looking forward to getting his bench some playing time, in an effort to shore up the team’s depth.

“It should give us an opportunity to see how others fit into the lineup,” he said. “If we can get our 8 and 9 players into the game, it should really benefit us in the long run. I think we should get a chance to get our reserves some quality minutes this weekend.”

John Vandelinder can be reached at 824-7031, ext. 211, or jvandelinder@craigdailypress.com