| 14 December 2009
It’s been said that a ray of sunshine peaks through every dark cloud.
Travis Van Diest was Rocky Mountain’s bright light in an otherwise gloomy night on Dec. 11, when the Grizzlies dropped a 44-34 decision to rival Eagle in a 5A SIC game at Rocky Mountain High.
Van Diest, the Grizzlies’ 6-foot-7 senior post, scored 11 points, grabbed five rebounds and registered the first slam dunk in school history.
The Grizzlies, who lost for the first time following three victories to start the season, jumped to a 13-6 lead after one period and played their best defensive game of the season as a big and noisy crowd looked on.
But Rocky Mountain also struggled to score, shooting 28 percent from the field for the game, and further hurt its cause by committing a season-high 18 turnovers. Eagle reeled off 17 straight points to start the second quarter and outscored the Grizzlies 19-3 in the period to take a 25-16 halftime lead.
The Grizzlies’ smothering man-to-man defense kept them in contention in the second half, and the host team inched to within 38-34 with just over three minutes to play. But Rocky Mountain failed to score the rest of the way and the Mustangs sank several free throws to widen the final margin.
Senior forward Josh Hasquet, Rocky Mountain’s leading scorer on the season, managed to tally eight points and hit two more 3-point baskets, giving him 17 for the season.