The effort was there, the fight was evident, but for the Mancos Bluejays girls basketball team, Dove Creek was just too tough.
Armed with a group of solid seniors, the Bulldogs travelled to Mancos on Jan. 10 and bested Bluejays 65-46 in front of a pro-Mancos crowd.
Hoping to make a statement early, the Bluejays had difficulty putting the ball in the basket and as a result, trailed 20-9 after the first quarter and 38-19 at halftime.
The Bluejays managed to pull things together in the second half however, limiting the Bulldogs to 27 second half points and outscoring a group of Dove Creek reserves 18-14 in the fourth quarter.
Leading the Bluejays in scoring with 13 point was senior Brandi Bundy. Sophomore Jessica Gutierrez added 10 points and junior Courtney Colyer added seven.
With their season record now at 1-6, the Bluejays will next play at home against Telluride on Jan. 14 before traveling to Nucla for a road matchup on Jan. 16.