Rivalries were certainly not diminished during the 1A girls basketball championship game Saturday night in Richfield.
The Rich Rebels made a fourth quarter comeback and beat region rival Tabiona, 40-38, in a thriller for the title.
“I‘m really just so proud of these girls,” said coach Cody Lundgren. “They’ve been there for each other and are always fighting for each other.”
Tabiona’s Maycee Rhoades dropped in the first bucket of the game and the Tigers stayed ahead through most of the first quarter until Molly Weston hit a 3-pointer, giving Rich a 10-9 lead heading into the second quarter.
The second frame was a game of runs, as Rebel Braylyn Pugmire scored Rich’s next seven points as it opened up a 17-11 advantage. Tabiona, however, responded by going on a 10-0 run to lead 21-17 at halftime, with Joy Gines making two 3-pointers and Rhoades adding two buckets.
The Tigers continued to control the game through the third period, which ended with them up by nine points.
“I just told the girls that we have to get going,” Lundgren said. “They responded very well. They boxed out, got some turnovers and hit some big shots.”
Brenley Hatch opened the scoring for Rich in the fourth quarter and then Pugmire got hot again and wound up scoring 11 of the Rebels’ 15 points in the fourth quarter.
“Braylyn really stepped up and went to work for us, and our guards handled it defensively really well,” Lundgren said. “We got it done.”
While Pugmire was racking up buckets (she finished the night with 23 points), the Rich defense became very stingy, holding Tabiona to four points in the last eight minutes, all from Rhoades, who ended the night with 15.
“She’s a great player and she has a great supporting team around her,” Lundgren said. “It was a team effort and I’m proud of every single one of those girls on our team.”
Added Pugmire, a sophomore: “We just needed some energy, so I had to do something. I knew at that point I had to go and find a way to score.”
The championship, Rich’s first since 2011, sets up a promising future for the Rebels, who only lose three seniors.
“I want to come back even stronger and to get another one,” Pugmire said.
Added senior Cassandra Argyle: “Nobody has seen chemistry like our team. We all genuinely love each other and that’s what makes a winning team.”
Being behind through the majority of the game was a new experience for Rich, which had beaten all its other opponents by double digits in the earlier rounds of the tournament.
“It was different to get down in the first half,” said Paige Smith, a senior. “I was confident in our team. I wasn’t scared.”
Senior Kira Jolley said while it was nerve wracking going into the final period with a deficit, she said it was important for her team to keep its composure.
“We just had to stay level,” Jolley said. “We know that we’ll pass the ball well and we didn’t get worried.”