From Deseret News archives:
High school girls basketball: Victory keeps Colts in playoff hunt
"We definitely know we can change things (in the region race)," said the senior after Cottonwood defeated Cyprus 43-30 Tuesday. "But we try to focus on ourselves and not worry about what other teams are doing."
But when a team is trying to hold onto fourth place — and its dream of making the 4A playoffs — it's hard not to pay attention, at least a little, to the other teams in the region.
"It's always fun to ruin someone else's chances," said Schwartz, who led the Colts' offense with 19 points, including three 3-pointers. "One thing our coach always tells us is any team can beat any other team on any given night. We feel we can take anyone on in our region."
Schwartz had some key plays, but none more important than the last three she hit with 1:59 left in the game. It came after the Pirates made a bit of a run and really shifted the momentum in favor of the Colts for the remainder of the game.
Schwartz said the new coaching staff is part of the reason Cottonwood may make it to the playoffs for the first time in a few years.
"They push us really hard," she said. "They've helped us a lot."
Cottonwood coach Janae Hirschi said the team's preseason goal was to "do the best we could do. ... We thought we could be in the top three, but statistically, we will probably be fourth. We want to hang onto that fourth place.We want to go to state."
Hirschi said the girls are motivated to make the playoffs, enough so that they spent some of their summer preparing for this season.
"I offered to help them in the offseason," said Hirschi. "The big improvement came in the offseason."
She said the success this season has the players thinking differently about what's possible for the Colt girls basketball program.
"This is huge," she said of making it to state. "Going to state is the beginning of what we want the standard to be for Cottonwood basketball."
She said having leadership like Schwartz is invaluable.
"She's a solid player and this is her senior year," Hirschi said. "She's just leaving it all out on the floor...She's really stepped up for us as a senior."
Hirschi said all of the players have worked hard and buy into the new program.
"I'm really proud of them," she said. "They're helping start something special here."
In addition to Schwartz, sophomore center Fehi Fakailoatonga added 16 points and was key on the boards for Cottonwood.
Sanshae Rasmussen and Ashlyn Mulford led Cyprus with seven points each, while Ciara Allen added six points.
Cyprus coach Terra Bingham is trying to convince her team that they, too, are capable of great things.
"The interesting thing is we lose close to Olympus, Murray and Highland, and then lose by 13 here," said Cyprus coach Terra Bingham. "There is a lot of mental in it."
E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com
