Season Recap: Jefferson County League (4A)

The end of the girls’ basketball season in Colorado was unsatisfying and inconclusive due to the advance of the coronavirus. But while the finality was more of a cliff hanger — and not the <em>’ooo cool</em>’ kind — there were plenty of team and player accomplishments around the regions that shouldn’t go unnoticed. As we continue our look at the leagues across the state and its standout players, let’s take a look at how the 4A Jefferson County League shaped up. <strong>Who won league in ’19-20</strong> Green Mountain won the league title with a well-rounded scoring attack and a stingy defense. The Rams went 12-0, outscoring conference teams 649-336. Evergreen was second at 9-3 followed by Golden (7-5), D’Evelyn (6-6), Standley Lake (4-8), Littleton (3-9) and Wheat Ridge (1-11). Eventually, Green Mountain ran all the way to the 4A Final Four before getting upended by Holy Family in a defensive slugfest. Evergreen, Golden and Littleton each won its first-round game before falling in the next round. Standley Lake lost its state opener, while Wheat Ridge did not qualify for the postseason. <strong>Five players who shined this winter</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="95024" first="Elli" last="Garnett"], 2020, SF, Golden</strong> Garnett is perhaps the league’s most gifted scorer, averaging nearly 20 points on 40-something percent shooting. She was the league’s undisputed super star. By the end of the season, the Northern Colorado commit had averaged a near double-double in leading the Demons to the second round of the postseason. She began the season with a 40-point outing on 61-percent shooting in a loss to Sand Creek, which would go on to nab the top seed in 4A. And she finished with seven games this season with 20 or more points. She is ranked ninth among the top seniors in the state per PGH. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="95134" first="Courtney" last="Hank"], 2021, SF, Green Mountain</strong> <span style="font-size: 1rem">Hank was particularly efficient while leading the team with 10.1 points per game at a 51 percent clip. It makes you wonder what her numbers would look like if she shot it a little more as she attempted 10 or more shots in just five games this season. Then again, balance was the reason for the Rams’ deep push.</span> The forward also averaged seven rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals in their Final Four run. She is ranked 13^th among juniors in the state and was named an honorable mention on the All-Junior Team by PGH. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="115805" first="Delaney" last="Huetson"], 2020, SF, Standley Lake</strong> Huetson averaged 9.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.4 assists in helping lead the Gators to the postseason. Looking back at the year, Huetson and Lexi Stout made a nice one-two combination for Standley Lake as each girl finished inside the top-eight in league scoring. Stout was named to the league’s first team with 9.2 PPG, while Huetson was put on the second team as she finished fifth in overall scoring with a 38 percent shooting rate. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="95211" first="Jameson" last="Mott"], 2023, G, Evergreen </strong> For Mott, her debut season included leading the team in points as the Cougars moved to the second round of the playoffs before bowing out. The freshman averaged 11.6 points — second-best in the league to Garnett — and shot 40 percent from the field. Expect her to be among the top prospects in her grade moving forward. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="117693" first="Avery" last="Oaster"], 2022, PF, Green Mountain</strong> To think the Rams’ chances at a state title ended with their loss to Holy Family in the state semifinals would be a bit premature. Their two lead girls will return next year as Hank is just a junior and Oaster is a sophomore. Oaster had the highest shooting percentage among players with at least 100 attempts, hitting 94 of 181 (52 percent). Hank was second at 51 percent on 198 attempts. The sophomore is ranked 34^th in her grade by PGH. <strong>Who was voted all-conference in ’19-20</strong> <strong>First team</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="95211" first="Jameson" last="Mott"], Evergreen [player_tooltip player_id="95024" first="Elli" last="Garnett"], Golden [player_tooltip player_id="95134" first="Courtney" last="Hank"], Green Mountain Hayley Dillon, Evergreen [player_tooltip player_id="117693" first="Avery" last="Oaster"], Green Mountain Susie Puchino, Littleton Mya Baker, Golden Lexi Stout, Standley Lake Peyton Balbin, D’Evelyn Maddie Topping, D’Evelyn <strong>Second team</strong> Anna Cimler, Evergreen [player_tooltip player_id="115805" first="Delaney" last="Huetson"], Standley Lake Angelina Quezada, Wheat Ridge [player_tooltip player_id="95215" first="Jayda" last="Maves"], Green Mountain Shea Murphy, Green Mountain [player_tooltip player_id="116772" first="Nicole" last="Levine"], Evergreen Madalyn Phillips, Green Mountain Brooke Wolanin, Littleton Lexie Szathmary, D’Evelyn Rylee Waggoner, D’Evelyn