Unified Basketball dominates final games of regular season

Karen Manley • March 8, 2017

On Monday March 6, Fossil Ridge High School’s Unified Basketball team took both wins in a double header against Poudre High School. Varsity won a close game ending in a 25-22 lead, and JV took the win 46-38. These wins left Fossil the City Champs of Poudre School District.

The first 50 fans received free sandwiches from subway and Firehouse Subs courtesy of Mrs. Rigby’s sophomore advisory. As the game began, JV had a strong start, scoring 12 points to triple Poudre’s 4 in the first five minutes. The student section, the largest all season, was cheering as loud as they could, holding signs made by NHS and three separate sophomore advisories; Rigby, Huckabee, and Sexton

Monday’s game had the largest student section of any game all season.

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Photo Credit: Karen Manley

At the end of the first half, Fossil was up 26-18. The third quarter was dominated by Dawson Coker, who was assisted by Jonathan Tillman and Liam Flake, leaving the score at 34-26 heading into the fourth quarter. Sebastian Bastille put up the final basket of the game for a final score of 46-38.

Between games, the team celebrated five athletes for Senior Night: Sydney Hansen, Prestyn Martin, Chloe Oster, Dominic Cardona, and Madi Ayraud. Each was escorted onto the court by their family, given flowers, a gift bag, and hugs from all the coaches. The athletes were beaming.

From Left to Right: Sydney Hansen, Prestyn Martin,

Dominic Cardona, Madi Ayraud, and Chloe Oster.

Photo Credit: Karen Manley

As the next game began, the varsity team kicked it into gear early on, taking a 4-2 lead. Fossil never let Poudre gain a lead. As the team pushed on, Collin Magnum brought the score to 15-10 with a three pointer. Poudre put up one last two pointer, and the half came to a close.

At halftime, the Unified Cheer team performed to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies.” Then, there was a surprise flash mob put on by the entire Poudre Team to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.”

Three minutes into the second half, Fossil was up 17-12. Poudre started to gain momentum towards the end, bringing the score to a nerve wrecking 23-20. However, after a missed three pointer for Poudre and one more point for each team, the final stood at 25-22.

Fossil’s final point was put up by David Van Skiver, a key player in the Varsity game. He felt his team, himself included, did, “pretty good.” His favorite part of Unified is, “helping out the team win,” and when asked his least favorite part, he replied, “none of the above.”

The Unified Team qualified for the state competition, taking place Friday, March 10 in Denver. Their games are at 1 and 2 at Gold Crown Field House. Good luck to the Sabercats!

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About the Contributor

Karen Manley, Editor in Chief

Karen Manley, a senior, has been in the journalism program since her freshman year. She feels most at home when writing about Unified Sports and activities, mental health, and other topics that people may not pay enough attention too. This year, Karen will be Co-Editor in Chief. Her responsibilities include taking care of the class emotionally and making sure that the paper runs smoothly. Karen explains “I’ve wanted to be an Editor in Chief since I was a freshman here. I am very excited to execute some of my ideas.”

Karen was in born San Diego, California and moved to Fort Collins when she was 14 years old. She currently lives with her family, including her mom, dad, and brother. She enjoys her friends' company, being the Co-Historian for NAHS, taking AP courses including Studio Art, geocaching, going on bike rides, and playing board games.

As a senior, Karen knows that she wants to further her education after leaving Fossil Ridge High School. She hopes to attend either UNC or Eastern Washington University to study journalism. She also wants to take a gap year to serve in AmeriCorps. After she completes college, she hopes to have graduated with a degree in order to pursue war journalism. Karen would like to become a journalist focused on the people living through hardship to shed light on problems rarely addressed.

Karen’s undeniable devotion to Etched in Stone can be seen clearly in her bubbly, kind, and sincere personality. She is excited to leave Fossil Ridge High School with a bang. Her dedication to Etched in Stone over the past three years has helped make the paper what it is today.