Head coach Lisa Corbit and her varsity Lady Eagles basketball team set a lofty goal for themselves at the beginning of the 2005-2006 season -- a state championship for Boulder City High School.
"We finished up the year with a 17-12 record," Corbit said. "I know when it comes to the end of the season and you fail to meet your goals, it may seem to be that you didn't do as well as you thought you should have.
"Our record was very respectable, and we beat a number of tough Class 4A schools at the beginning of the season."
Because they lost the state championship game last year by a shot at the buzzer against the Pahrump Valley Trojans, the Lady Eagles worked hard all season in preparation for the Southern Class 3A Divisional Girls Basketball Tournament at Del Sol High School on Feb. 16 and 18.
"Unfortunately, our state playoff system is set up where only one team from the South got to go to the state championships," Corbit said. "It certainly isn't a fair representation of the quality of the teams in the state, but next year we're supposed to get two teams to the big dance. Hopefully, we'll be one of them."
Because of a realignment in the state championship bracketing for the 3A division, only the winner of the divisional tournament earned a spot at the state championships.
"I purposely set up a harder schedule with nine more games than last year," Corbit said. "We held our own against all the Class 4A schools we played, and the girls gained a lot of respect from all those coaches and players. We did very well at the Tip-Off Classic in early November, and it gave the ladies plenty of confidence for the season."
Boulder City lost to the Faith Lutheran Crusaders, 53-43, in the divisional championship game, forcing the Lady Eagles to settle for second place in the division.
The game came down to which team could make more outside shots, and the Crusaders kept raining three-point baskets whenever the Lady Eagles would make a run at the lead.
Junior Katie Palmer led Boulder City on both ends of the court at guard. Sophomore Katlyn Peters added 10 points, and senior Dena Houser, junior Noelle Milicic and freshman Caiti Forrester had five points each.
"Should we have been at state? Absolutely," Corbit said. "Our shooting percentage against Faith was only 25 percent, and we got into some foul trouble early. You can't win championship games that way. Sometimes it's the little things that don't go your way that determine how a game ends."
"We had our ups and downs this season," Houser said. "It was a long run this year, but we played our best at the end."
The Lady Eagles finished the season with a 6-2 league record and a number of players were selected for postseason honors. Palmer was named to the Class 3A All-State Team, and Forrester received Second Team All-State honors.
Palmer and Forrester also were selected for the Southern Class 3A All-Division First Team. Houser and senior Julie Stajszczak were named to the Second Team All-Division, and Milicic and senior Tori Forrester earned Honorable Mention honors.
"My highlight this season was senior night," Houser said. "It was our last game of the year at home, and we had our big win over the Faith Lutheran Crusaders."
The captains of the team were Tori Forrester and Stajszczak. The other members of the varsity team were seniors Lizet Granados and Shauna Smith and juniors Koah Fielding and Naomi Mavity.
"The high point of the season for me is that even though we are losing a lot of seniors, it's exciting that we have a number of talented younger players who will move the program forward in the future," Corbit said. "Katie Palmer was named to First Team All-State, even though we didn't make it as a team. Caiti Forrester was named to Second Team All-State, so we have some real strong players who will be coming back next year."
Freshman phenom Caiti Forrester ignited the offense this year as she led the team in scoring with a 12 point-per-game average. Palmer was second in scoring with a 10.3 average, and Houser finished with a 9.3 average.
Forrester also bossed the boards for Boulder City all season, as she pulled down 201 rebounds. Her sister Tori Forrester added 147 rebounds, and Palmer and Houser hauled in 109 rebounds each.
Stajszczak was the playmaker on the team as she led the ladies in assists with 74.
"The girls next season should be pretty close to where we were this year and last year," Houser said. "With Katie Palmer, Caiti Forrester and Katlyn Peters returning, they have a strong nucleus to build on. They should be a very competitive team."
Kathy Meyer returned as the varsity assistant coach.
"We have a solid squad to build on," Corbit said. "We'll do a lot of work this summer, and I'm already looking forward to next year."
Jim Konst is a local freelance writer. Send story ideas and comments to him at jkonst54@aol.com.
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