Out of all the Colorado 1A boys’ basketball teams, the Haxtun Bulldogs ended their season with a Great 8 finish, and despite a tough loss to a team that finished in the championship, the Bulldogs boast a final 11-6 winning record.

The Haxtun team made the almost 400-mile drive to take on DeBeque, the number-three seeded team out of the 24-team bracket. The Bulldogs entered as the number 11 seeded team, taking down Simla and Primero on their road to the Great 8.

The DeBeque Dragons jumped to an early 13-9 advantage in the first quarter of the March 16 match up in the Colorado 1A State basketball finals. The Bulldogs put up nine points in the first quarter and nine in the second but trailed 31-18 at the half.

The Bulldogs battled in the third, putting 12 points on the board while holding the Dragons to 13. In the final eight minutes, the Bulldog defense held the home team to 10 points while the offense scored 16, but DeBeque carried on a 54-46 win to advance to the final four.

The Dragons went on to beat number-two seeded Merino to earn their spot in the Championship. Belleview Christian earned the 1A title Sunday afternoon with a 69-35 win over DeBeque.

“We just weren’t able to get in a good offense rhythm,” Head Coach Jayden Stieb said of his team’s final match up this season. “We had good runs but couldn’t string it all together. We also had trouble making shots all night. Defensively I thought we played really well. We put a lot of responsibility on Isaac Andersen and he stepped up to the challenge. Our inability to put the ball in the basket turned out to be the difference in the game.”

In his final outing as a Haxtun Bulldog basketball player, senior Ryan Tempel led his team with 17 points in DeBeque. His sophomore brother, Maclin, added nine and junior Osman Coss added eight.

“I’m really proud of our guys and everything they gave this season. We had our ups and downs but they gave it their all in every practice and every game,” Stieb said at the conclusion of the 2021 season. “The post-season experience that we gained this year will be huge. Ryan was our top scorer and rebounder these last two seasons. It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to coach him. I couldn’t have asked for a better senior to lead the team. He will be really hard to replace going forward, but I feel like we have guys that are ready to step up.”