Lady Jays rout Telluride; Gutierrez leads scoring

Gutierrez scores 19 in Lady Jays’ big win

The Mancos Lady Blue Jays (6-9) routed the visiting Telluride Miners (3-12) on Friday, running away with a 49-18 win on the school’s senior night.

The Jays pressured Telluride into turnovers and scored transition buckets early, but it was their sharp shooting that buried the visiting Miners.

Brittney Peacock and Nicole Hess knocked in jumpers from all over to give the Jays a 15-1 lead after the first quarter, and Hess stayed locked in from mid-range in the second.

The Mancos junior set up shop at the elbow and, after catching passes, turned and knocked down jumpers without hesitating.

Peacock hit three jumpers in the first quarter before extending her range in the second. She knocked down one 3-pointer in the frame, and nearly had a second, but her toe was on the line.

Hess scored 13 first-half points, and Peacock added 11 as the Blue Jays built a comfortable 28-9 lead at the break.

“We knocked down some outside shots tonight,” said Mancos head coach Mallory Morgan. “They fell for us, which was nice. It was nice to see that for Brittney and for Nicole. Nicole attacked the rim well and Jessica’s shots fell.”

“We needed those three to show up,” she said. “Because they’re the only three that scored tonight.”

Hess and Peacock led the team in scoring in the first half, but senior Jessica Gutierrez took over in the second.

Gutierrez scored the Jays’ first seven points in the third, first on a nice feed from Hess and then on a left-handed shot inside, before stepping back and canning a triple.

Gutierrez scored 15 second-half points and finished with a team-high 19 as the Lady Jays ran away with a 49-18 win.

Hess scored 17 points on the night, and Peacock finished out the team’s scoring with 13 points.

As the team’s only senior, Morgan said the Jays wanted to win the senior night contest for Gutierrez.

“It’s such an emotional thing, because it’s your last home game,” she said after the win. “I think they were a little hyped, and I think the team, for the most part, wanted it for her. And that’s what I said, if you’re going to play for anybody, that’s who you need to play for.”