By Mike Weaver

The Montezuma-Cortez High School boys and girls varsity basketball teams fired their first volleys over the weekend during their Cortez Invitational Basketball Tournament at Ron Wright Memorial Gymnasium.

Both teams finished up the tournament with mixed results after competing with teams from Pagosa Springs, Delta and Monticello, Utah, in the boys bracket; and girls teams from Pagosa, Delta, and Rio Rancho, N.M.

The Panther boys finished up in second place after losing 74-65 to Delta in the championship game Saturday. In Friday’s opener against Monticello, they were convincing 61-48 winners.

Meanwhile, the Cortez girls whacked their counterparts from Delta 79-43 to take third place Saturday. The win came on the heels of a 35-28 loss to Pagosa Friday.

Rio Rancho claimed the championship in the girls bracket with a 60-47 win over Pagosa Saturday. In the tournament opener, the Rams steamrollered Delta 72-38.

Cortez’ Eric White was named to the All-Tournament team along with Eric Thompson and Nick Garver of Delta, David Goodenburger of Pagosa, and Preston Bunker of Monticello.

Panther Casey Bauer joined Rio Rancho’s Brittany Burtner and Shena Galla, Briauna Story of Delta and Mandy Forrest of Pagosa on the girls All-Tourney squad.

The Cortez boys took a 38-30 lead to the locker room at halftime during the championship game against Delta Saturday. But the second half was an entirely different ball game. Delta cashed in on some key Panther turnovers and coasted on to the trophy after taking the lead in a 20-6 third stanza.

Cortez coach Wade Mortensen still saw some promise in his team’s debut.

"I feel good about the weekend," Mortensen said. "We have some young kids playing, and for the most part, our kids looked great.

"We had four turnovers our of five possessions in that third quarter (against Delta). The game changed that quick."

Chris Garland swooshed a three point goal to give Cortez a 41-34 lead early in the second half, but then the team lost the handle on the ball as Delta used full court pressure to good effect. A Delta run of six points cut the Panther lead to 41-40, and then Thompson completed an old fashioned three pointer to put Delta up 43-41 with 3:41 left in the quarter. The Panther managed to put just three more points on the scoreboard while Delta was good for eight more, and Cortez lagged 50-44 at the buzzer.

Cortez closed to within two points in the fourth quarter but could not get closer. With 5:30 left in the game, Marcus Mortensen hit a three pointer and closed the gap to 56-54. White was good for two hits from outside the arch, but Delta kept its distance going thirteen out of 16 at the free throw line.

White scored 26 points, including five three-point goals to lead all scorers. Mortensen chipped on 14 points in the losing effort. Thompson, Garver and Daniel Renfrow led Delta in scoring with a respective 21, 18 and 15 points.

The Panthers were in control throughout their opening game against Monticello Friday. Less than four minutes into the first period, they enjoyed a 11-0 lead. Monticello called time out to regroup with 3:37 left and came out stronger. But the Panther kept the momentum. White scored 11 points in the first eight minutes of play, and Cortez was on top 19-13.

Offense slowed in the second quarter, but the Panther still had the edge, making a 9-5 run. At intermission it was a 28-18 Cortez lead. During the second half, Cortez managed to hold off a strong Monticello rally. At the end of the third quarter, it was a 47-46 lead, and the Panther had a 14-12 edge in scoring coming down the home stretch.

White again was top scorer with a 26 point total, and Mortensen tallied 14. The top Buckaroos were Thompson with 21 points, Garver with 18 and Renfrow with 15.

The Panther girls put in creditable performances throughout the weekend despite playing without two key players, Lindsay Waggoner and Holly Tanner. The two seniors had another sport on their minds as they were at Ricks College in Rexburg, Ida., trying out for the volleyball squad.

The loss was not insurmountable, though. Coach Phil Baca praised his young team in its first outings.

"The kids who that were here today (against Delta) played very well. They played really hard and did a good job, "Baca remarked after Saturday’s win.

Cortez was up to four quarters of quality basketball Saturday, as its offense and defense were in sync. A tight full court press created a legion of turnovers for the Panthers, and they converted a copious portion.

"You’ve got to have an aggressive mentality on defense, but you’ve got to have a more cautious, analytical mentality on defense," Baca explained. "We didn’t try to drive the ball down their throat we just took what they gave us."

Delta gave the Panthers what they wanted. After the first quarter, they led 17-10, and their margin was stretched to 36-22 at the break.

Six Panthers got in on the scoring act in the third stanza as the team went on a tear. Cortez tallied 24 points while Delta was held to one field goal and a couple of free throws. After three, Cortez led 60-26.

Stephanie Allison scored eight points in the fourth stanza to lead the Cortez final drive as it fought off a Delta rally. With 1:49 left to play, Andrea Derrick hit two from the charity line to give the Panthers a 79-33 lead. A Delta run of ten unanswered points came up far short.

Allison claimed game high honors with 23 points. Team mates Bauer and Annie Mortensen added 13 and 11 points to the Panther winning edge. For Delta, Story hit for 10 points.

The Panthers held a 11-8 lead over Pagosa after a quarter in their opening game Friday. But their game went south in the second stanza and they never recovered.

The second quarter developed into a defensive game with both teams turning the basketball over. Cortez stumbled when it tried to force its offense, and the Pirates seized momentum. Nicole Stephens found the basket with 3:53 left in the first half to give Cortez a 14-11 lead. The score was knotted when Pagosa’s Bonnie O’Brien hit a three pointer, and then the Pirates pulled ahead at the free throw line. At half time, Pagosa led 17-16.

Bauer was good for a couple of baskets and two free throws to lead the Panthers in the third period, but Pagosa got inside and hit for 12. With eight minutes to play, Cortez trailed 29-24.