DOLORES – Heading out of the holiday break, the Dolores boys and girls basketball teams returned to the floor with an extra bit of pep in their step – and for good reason.
The DHS boys posted their best record before winter break in at least 20 years, while the Bears girls team’s last taste of 2025 included the program’s best offensive output in a decade. With San Juan Basin League play waiting for them on Saturday afternoon in Ridgway – the defending SJBL boys champs – Dolores can begin to set its sights on even loftier goals.
Even in a pair of setbacks against Monticello on Tuesday night in the Bears’ home opener, DHS showed the promise that their quickness and disruptive play will bring all winter long. The Dolores girls controlled the first half against the visiting Buckaroos by upping the tempo and cashing in on turnovers, but couldn’t protect the ball or their lead in the second half in a 53-41 defeat.
The DHS boys, meanwhile, also forced turnovers at a breakneck pace and led most of the way against Monticello, but big buckets by the visitors down the stretch flipped the script in the fourth quarter in a 40-31 win for the Bucks.
Sophomore backcourt piling up points for DHS girls
While the numbers aren’t large for first-year head coach Mike Nielson and the Bears this season – they had nine players available for their home-opening loss to Monticello – the team more than makes up for that with speed and tenacity.
Sophomores Jordyn Erautt and Emilynn Hill spearhead the feisty Bears backcourt attack – each reaching double figures in their last two outings, including both posting career highs (Hill – 24, Erautt – 20) in a 66-15 win over West Grand in mid-December.
The Bears love flying to the ballhandlers, but have become even more adept at waiting in the wings for opponents to fire perimeter passes that the duo can step in front of like a football free safety before soaring down the court.
Nielson’s team continues to work diligently to use its strength in the paint to generate more scoring opportunities, where four-year starter Taylor Erautt resides as one of the threats to attack around the rim. Erautt’s 13 points led the Bears on Tuesday night, joining her sister Jordyn’s 10 points, while Hill also dropped in 10.
The combination of staying healthy and out of foul trouble will factor prominently in the Bears’ search for their first postseason appearance since 2018-19. DHS even found a way to win in spite of those factors in its season opener against Bayfield, when the Bears somehow pulled out a 54-49 overtime victory over the Wolverines while finishing with only four players on the floor.
Senior Kacey Schmittel has become a force on the boards to accompany Erautt in the paint, as Nielson and the Bears prepare to take on Ridgway on Saturday to officially kick off play in the Basin.
Ultimately, a shooting exhibition from Monticello junior Maron Freestone – six three-pointers on the night and a game-high 25 points – undid the hard work the Bears put in to take a 23-19 lead at the intermission. Freestone scored 20 second-half points, including a pair of triples in a decisive 16-0 run to begin the third quarter.
DHS finished league play last year with its best record in the SJBL in five seasons (4-8) and hopes to continue climbing the standings this winter when it opens the slate with four of its first five SJBL contests coming away from Bears Fieldhouse.
Dolores boys eyeing first winning season in eight years
Last year, DHS head coach Nick Traweek and his young Bears team put the league on notice with several decisive wins against contenders on their way to their best record in three years in the Basin (4-8).
This year, the second-year head coach knows his team won’t be sneaking up on anyone – his Bears roared out to a 5-2 start before the holidays behind an eclectic number of on-court combinations.
Through eight games, 17 different Bears have collected varsity minutes, but as the Bears (5-3) begin to settle on their rotations, DHS has proven one thing to be true – no matter who’s on the floor, the Bears aren’t afraid to attack the basket.
Steady in their rotation, junior Koby McClellan (14 ppg) and senior Michael Rantz (14 ppg) have combined to account for about half of the team’s scoring, plenty of which has come from a high-pressing defense that seeks to generate quick-strike opportunities in transition.
Sophomore Lane Johnson, standing a full head above most of his opponents, showcased what he could do around the rim with a team-high 11 points and multiple blocked shots in the loss to the Buckaroos.
Junior Lucas Decker knocked in a couple of clutch baskets in a back-and-forth second half, including a bucket to tie the game at 31, but the visitors (3-7) scored the final nine points over the last three minutes to secure the victory.
Monticello senior Jackson Keyes led the way for the Buckaroos with 10 points, while sophomore Kord Young added seven in the defensive battle.
Much like the girls program, the Bears hope to snap a six-year playoff drought, while both programs have the opportunity to post winning seasons in the same year for the first time since 2012-13. Dolores will get its first test against the defending SJBL champions Ridgway on Saturday before returning to its home floor to face Telluride on Tuesday, Jan. 13.
