Tigers in top spot headed to West Regionals

Encampment beats Saratoga, Rock River, North Park to take top ranking to playoffs

The Encampment Tigers remain No. 1 as they head into the 1A West Regional Tournament following a slim victory against the Saratoga Panthers (10-9, 2-6) on Thursday. Along with their win against the Panthers, Encampment was also successful against the Rock River Longhorns (6-12, 2-3) on Friday and the North Park Wildcats on Saturday for their final home game.

Encampment vs.

Saratoga

While originally scheduled for Jan. 31, the rematch between the Tigers and Saratoga was moved due to the rescheduling of other games. On Thursday, Encampment entered the Panther Den and delivered a heartbreaker Valentine's Day game to the Panthers as both teams dominated the court.

In the first quarter, the Tigers took an early lead against Saratoga with a 3 point margin going into the second quarter. It was the biggest lead the end of any quarter would see as the Panthers fought to keep up with Encampment. Often, the two teams went basket-for-basket and the Tigers would lead by only a single point.

While the Panthers were leading going into halftime, Encampment quickly fixed that in the second half. Keeping pressure on Saratoga, the Tigers retook their lead and kept it throughout the rest of the game. Consistent shooting from the Encampment boys kept them ahead.

Reid Schroeder led the Tigers against Saratoga, scoring 22 points with 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Dalton Peterson followed with 17 points and 9 rebounds. Sean Stewart scored 10 points and had 8 rebounds and Dayne Anderson scored 10 points and had 5 rebounds.

In the final seconds of the match, it appeared as if the Panthers would force the game into overtime. With Encampment leading by 2 Saratoga attempted a layup and missed. Going in for a rebound, Schroeder was fouled with only a second left in the game. Both free throws, however, were unsuccessful. As the buzzer rang, the Tigers won 62-60.

Encampment vs.

Rock River

When Encampment hosted the Longhorns on Jan. 25, the Tigers dug their claws into Rock River with a 62-point lead. On Friday, as they were hosted by the Longhorns, Encampment didn't have as much of a lead, but still held a nearly 40-point lead by the end of the game.

Schroeder, again, led Encampment with a triple double as he scored 16 points and had 11 assists, 11 steals and 6 rebounds. Peterson followed with 18 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Kyler Miller scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds and Kagan Gilbert scored 13 points and had 7 rebounds.

Encampment vs.

North Park

The final home game, and final game of the regular season, was also the first game the Tigers had against North Park. While scheduled to play the Wildcats on Dec. 20, North Park forfeited the game. Encampment quickly took advantage of what appeared to be division within the Colorado team.

Within the first few minutes of the game, Schroeder and Miller collided with each other in pursuit of the ball and forced them to the bench for a short period of time. Despite this, the Tigers took control of their court and racked up the points as the Wildcats spent more time arguing with each other than playing the game.

Encampment ended the first quarter with a 31-point lead with a score of 35-6.

As the game continued, Jake Johnston, head coach of the Encampment Tigers, replaced many of his starters with substitutes. Even with the subs in, the Tigers continued to lead. Before the end of the second quarter, as things were still heated between the North Park boys, the Wildcats head coach was given a technical foul and forced to sit down for telling one of the referees to watch an Encampment player because he was "terrible."

Going into halftime, the Tigers led North Park by 30 points.

When both teams returned, Encampment put the game into a running clock near the end of the third quarter as they increased their lead to 40 points. While the second half began with the regular starters, substitutes were, again, put on the court.

In the fourth quarter, Johnston pulled his seniors to applause from Tiger Nation for a game well played at the end of the regular season. With a running clock still in play, the rest of the game was played with subs and underclassmen.

Stewart scored 29 points against North Park and had 7 steals while Miller scored 15 points and Peterson scored 7 points and had 8 assists.

As the buzzer sounded, the Tigers were ahead by over 40 points as they ended the game 77-30.

Following last week's games, the Tigers are now 20-1 for the season and 7-1 for conference. Encampment will be going into the 1A West Regional Tournament as the No. 1 Southwest seed and will play the winner of a pigtail game between the Ten Sleep Pioneers (3-15, 1-7) and the Dubois Rams (4-19, 1-7) at 7 p.m. on Feb. 21.

 

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