Panthers lose 2 heartbreakers

The Saratoga Panthers hosted the Farson-Eden Pronghorns and the Cokeville Panthers in the Panther Den over the weekend. Both days saw Saratoga dealing with losses as the Pronghorns narrowly escaped by 6 points on Friday and Cokeville left with a 16 point lead on Saturday. The weekend also saw Gage Bartlett surpass the 1,000 point mark for his high school career.

Panthers defended well against the Pronghorns through the first half and their offense led them to a 19-10 lead after the first quarter. Saratoga was able to maintain that lead into the half.

Bartlett, with 2:54 left in the second quarter, broke the 1,000 point milestone. The game was stopped as his achievement was announced to those attending. Bartlett was then presented with the game ball.

With the game resumed, the Panthers went into the half with a 39-33 lead against the Pronghorns. As the 2nd half began, Farson-Eden stepped up their defense leaving Saratoga with a 1 point lead by the end of the 3rd quarter.

Motivated by their new mission, the Pronghorns outscored the Panthers throughout the final quarter of the game. Despite Saratoga closing the gap, Farson-Eden came out of the game ahead. Final score was 63-69.

"Farson is a good team and we played with them for 3 quarters," said Jason Williams, Saratoga Panthers head coach. "In the end, rebounding killed us."

Sophomore Logan Seahorn and junior Sam Schneider led the team in scoring against the Pronghorns with 13 points each. Bartlett followed up with 10 points and Colton Jones with 8 points. Schneider led the team in rebounds with seven and Bartlett in assists, also with seven.

Williams also said that the Panthers will need to do a better job of keeping the Pronghorns off the offensive boards when they meet again on Feb. 3

Saturday saw Panthers, both purple and black, face off in the Panther Den. Saratoga began the day with a 6 point lead. Undeterred, Cokeville managed to take a 1 point lead after the first quarter. Saratoga attempted to break the lead, but were unable to do so as Cokeville was successful with several 3-pointers.

Cokeville managed to score their fourth 3-point shot with 4 seconds left in the half, giving them a 22-24 lead. While Saratoga was able to keep the scores close, another 3-point shot from Cokeville gave them a 6-point lead.

Saratoga's Panthers were unable to close Cokeville's 8-point lead going into the final quarter with a score of 38-46. Cokeville maintained their lead through the 4th quarter, ending the game with a score of 45-69.

"Cokeville came to play on Saturday and we came out flat," said Williams, "It was a back and forth game ... they hit their free throws down the stretch and we struggled to capitalize on our possessions."

Williams said the team will be making some adjustments before they head to Cokeville on Feb. 2.

Bartlett led the Panthers in scoring against Cokeville with 15 points, followed by Nathan Rimmer with 10, and Seahorn and Schneider both with 7. Rimmer was the top rebounder with nine followed by Cameron Travis with six and Jones with four.

After this weekend, the Saratoga Panthers are 1-2 for conference and 7-4 for the season.

The Panthers will next host Kaycee's Buckaroos at 1 p.m. on Jan. 20.