Cold shooting leads Lady Eagles to conference loss in Arvada

By Scott Fuller

1/20/05 - The Gilpin County Eagles girls’ basketball team shot a meager 6-of-33 from the field, including an uncharacteristic 3-of-13 shooting performance from senior center Andrea Galanski, as the Lady Eagles dropped their first conference matchup of the season 34-20 to Jefferson Academy Friday night.

  The loss is Gilpin’s third in its last six games and breaks a brief two-game winning streak the Eagles had earned against Community Christian and Brighton Charter after losing straight games to North Park and Longmont Christian to begin the month 22-61 and 21-43, respectively.

  Its disappointing shooting performance aside, Gilpin was relatively consistent in its intangible floor performance, tallying 26 rebounds, 6 assists, 6 steals, and seven blocks as a team. Andrea Galanski had 12 of these rebounds and all but one of her team’s blocks, but her surprising inability to score inside and 2-of-6 shooting night from the free throw line proved an inadequate counter to the motion-style offense of her team’s opponent.

  In fact, the Lady Eagles never held a lead in Friday’s game; falling behind 4-0 six minutes in before a free throw from Katie Vaughn put Gilpin on the board. The Jaguars slowly built their lead throughout the remainder of the first half, countering what little the Eagles could accomplish offensively with speedy guard play and a surprising presence inside. Gilpin outscored Jefferson in the second quarter 6-5, but a 7-3 first-quarter lead built by the home Jaguars was enough to lift them to a 12-8 halftime advantage.

  The Gilpin offense seemed more coordinated as the second half began, but Jefferson was ready; countering head coach Jeff Schuessler’s plan to isolate the senior Galanski both on the block and elsewhere on the floor by double-teaming the senior down low and invading the passing lanes which would allow the team’s high scorer the ball. Galanski scored seven of her team-high nine points in the second half, but the effort proved inadequate as Jefferson found holes in the Eagle zone to connect with midrange jump shots from all sides. A 10-4 run by the Lady Jags late in the third period and well into the fourth put the Eagles, along with their hopes for a third consecutive win, on ice.

  The ineffectiveness of Galanski Friday brought to the offensive forefront some usually quiet shooter for Gilpin. Senior Kim Fuller shot 2-of-6 from the field, including 2-of-3 from three-point range, to score six on the night. Also, senior Amber Sterling accounted for four points and a steal.

  Aside from its January 7 loss to Yuma, the Jefferson Jaguars haven’t lost a game by more than three points, and are now 5-3 (1-0 Conference) overall, having won four straight.

  Gilpin, meanwhile, falls to 6-4 overall (0-1 Conference). The Lady Eagles will begin play in the heart of their conference schedule at home against Arrupe Jesuit on January 18, and then Denver Academy on the 21st.