Haxtun Bulldogs advance to the Great 8

The Haxtun Bulldogs advanced to the Great 8 in post-season playoff basketball action.

The road to the Great 8 started with a 22-point victory over the Simla Cubs at home last Tuesday. Haxtun entered the contest as the 11th seeded team out of a 24-team bracket in State playoffs; altered to a shortened two-week schedule this year due to COVID-19. The 56-34 win at home gave the Bulldogs their ticket to the Sweet 16.

"It was nice to get a win in the first round. You never know how teams will react when it comes time for post season, so it was nice to get one under our belt," Jayden Stieb, Haxtun Head Coach said.

In his final home-court showing in a Bulldog jersey, senior Ryan Tempel led the team with 19 points. Junior Owen Knode and sophomore Michael Gerk each added 10.

The first-round victory sent the Bulldogs to the southern-most part of the State Thursday night for a contest with the number six seeded team, the Primero Bulldogs.

The Haxtun Bulldogs struggled early, finding themselves down 13-2 shortly into the first quarter but once in a groove, the team battled back to be competitive throughout the remainder of the contest. In a back and forth matchup, Haxtun held composure and with big shots from Tempel and Gerk at the end, pulled away with a 57-56 win.

"We struggled early. I think we might have still been on the bus for the first two minutes," Stieb said. "Once we got settled down, we just had to chip away to get back into it. We fought hard down the stretch and got to huge shots from Ryan and Michael that proved to be the difference in the game."

Gerk led the Bulldogs in Primero, putting up 16 points followed by Knode with 15 and Tempel with 14.

Knocking off the sixth-seeded team gave the Bulldogs a spot in the Great 8 this week. On Tuesday, the Bulldogs traveled again, this time to take on number-three seeded DeBeque for an evening contest. According to Maxpreps, DeBeque stands at 14-1 this season. Results of the contest were not available as of press time.

Should the Bulldogs beat DeBeque, the team is slated to take on the winner of Merino and Mile High Academy in one of two final four matchups on March 18. Watch the Haxtun Figthin' Bulldog Booster Club page on Facebook for updates on final four and championship games later this week.