Throughout his team’s 70-47 home victory over Dove Creek on Jan. 30, Dolores junior Tristen Swagerty attacked the offensive glass, played top-notch defense, and scored layups and jump shots over smaller defenders.

By the time the game was done, little doubt existed as to Swagerty’s status as one of the San Juan Basin League’s top forwards. After the game, Dolores head coach Larry Schwartz praised the big man’s effort.

“He’s kind of the glue that keeps our team together and makes our offense go,” Schwartz said. “He picked up three fouls in the first half and had to sit, but he was able to stay out of foul trouble in the second half and score some big buckets.”

Aiding Swagerty in the Bears’ win were Justin Purkat and Dakota Smith, who scored 16 and 11 points, respectively. Dolores led 13-6 at the end of the first quarter and 23-19 at halftime before outscoring the Bulldogs by 19 points in the second half.

The Bulldogs were led in scoring by junior Ryan Martinez, who netted 19 points. Junior Tristen Jarmon and sophomore Ty Smith each scored eight points, and freshman Hayden Gray had five. Dove Creek knocked down eight three-pointers as a team on 26 total attempts.

“They hit quite a threes that kept the game close in the first half,” Schwartz said. “We still have to work on our defense. It’s not where we want it to be, and we have a few weeks to fix that. We were coming off a tough loss to Ridgway though, and it was nice to see us get back on track.”

Dolores improved to 8-5 overall on the season and 5-2 in the San Juan Basin League with the win. Dove Creek dropped to 3-10 overall and 1-5 in the San Juan Basin League with the loss.

Next up for Dolores will be a road game against league powerhouse Ignacio, which will take place at 7 p.m. on Feb. 1. Dove Creek’s next game will take place on the road against Durango High School’s junior varsity team at 7 p.m. on Feb. 1.