It’s a great year for those in the West End to be watching high school basketball. The Mustangs, both the guys and the girls teams, remain undefeated this season as of press time. Over the weekend, both teams were 10-0, having beaten first Ridgway and then Mancos.
Both teams are made up of teens from Nucla and Norwood, combining for a demonstration of hard work, chemistry and determination.
The boys team beat Mancos Jan. 10, 78-40, and the JV team won 45-41. Before that, the boys bested Ridgway on Jan. 8, 52-47.
Head coach for the guys Mike Rummel is no doubt proud of the boys. At the same time, he’s not taking any of it for granted and is keeping the team humble and looking ahead.
“We are 10-0 now,” he said Sunday evening. “We are still rolling pretty well, we have been able to do enough to get the job done, we still have a lot to work on to put ourselves in the position we want to be in at the end of the regular season. We know that pretty much every game that we play this season is going to be competitive.”
Rummel told the Forum the guys cannot come into any game overlooking the opponent.
“We have to come focused and ready to play,” he said.
Similarly, the girls are on fire. The ladies beat Mancos on Jan. 10, 49-24, and the JV girls won 48-15. Then, before that they also beat Ridgway on Jan. 8, 46-34.
Head coach for the girls Stan Galley maintains a similar mindset of confidence balanced with humility.
He told the Forum the girls came out of their winter break a bit off last week.
“We didn’t play our best basketball, but we played alright,” he said. “Coming back from Christmas, we were a little rusty and had to get our chemistry back a little, like we lost it a bit over break.”
Regarding the current record and the winning streak both the guys and girls are enjoying, Galley agreed it’s really good for the teams.
“It’s a testament to the hard work of the kids, for sure,” he said.
And, he said the girls are again finding their groove, now more than a week back into their regular season practices.
“We are starting to play pretty well together,” he said, adding that San Juan Basin League play has started, and the girls intend to keep “grinding away at it.”
Monday, Jan. 12, the JV teams headed to Montrose.
Thursday, Jan. 18, Nucla hosts Ouray at home.
Galley said the home games have held a good turnout, and the local support is good to see.
He’s quietly confident in the girls' ability to get the job done this year.
“The girls are coming in and putting the work in the practice, and that definitely translates onto the floor during the games,” he said.
A full schedule of the remaining basketball season can be viewed on the West End Public Schools District website. All are invited to come out and support the Mustangs.
