BOULDER - The stage was brighter, the stakes higher and the crowd louder.

Ho-hum, according to the Harrison girls basketball team.

The Panthers seemed undaunted by the high-profile surroundings at the Coors Events Center and turned in a steady and even performance in a 57-41 win against Glenwood Springs in the Class 4A state semifinals.

The Panthers (24-3) grabbed an early lead and never trailed, appearing calm and composed from the opening tip.

"Definitely," said Harrison's Paige Ricker, who scored 15 points. "We always say fear is death, and we kept that in mind. We're not afraid of anybody."

Alystia Moore led the Panthers with 16 points and 11 rebounds. The 6-foot senior helped undersized Harrison to a 42-33 edge on the boards, including 20-8 on the offensive glass.

"We worked a lot on boxing out during practice, and it worked," Moore said. "They have a lot of big girls and we're really short."

Harrison, of the Colorado Springs Metro League, rocketed to an 11-3 lead and entered halftime ahead 28-19. Glenwood Springs twice cut the lead to five, including 46-41 with a little more than 3 minutes to play.

But Harrison blanked the Demons the rest of the way, converting nine of 13 free throws in the final minutes to seal the victory.

"Defense, that's our main thing is defense," Moore said. "It came down to good, solid defense and us hitting our free throws at the end."

Glenwood Springs, from the Western Slope League, might have had a case of nerves to begin the contest, but the Demons (20-5) settled in and put together a decent second-half run. Ultimately, though, Harrison's team speed was too much to overcome.

"They were faster than (heck); they were so fast," Glenwood Springs center Sam Ciani said. "From where we come from, teams are not. That's what shook us. They pressed a lot of the game, and we don't get pressed a lot."

Ciani scored 12 points and grabbed a game-best 14 rebounds and Kelsie Hert scored a team- best 16 for the Demons. Ciani said the Demons' slow start had more to do with Harrison.

"I didn't really have the jitters, it was just that Harrison came out with this bubble of intensity," Ciani said. "It showed when they pressed and trapped us, and that hurt us, because we couldn't come out and take it to them."

Glenwood Springs......10	9	12	10	-	41
Harrison......18	10	11	18	-	57

GS - Avery Denney 0 0-0 0, Katrina Selsor 1 0-0 2, Sharaya Selsor 3 3-4 11, Kelsie Hert 5 6-8 16, Sam Ciani 6 0-3, 12, Natasha Derby 0 0-0 0, Laura Young 0 0-0 0, Abby Vincent, Deb Collins 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 9-15 41.

H - Raquel Pennington 3 2-4 8, Tracee Hamacher 2 1-3 5, Paige Ricker 3 8-11 15, Myecha Taylor 2 5-6 9, Alystia Moore 7 2-3 16, Lacey Tefft 0 0-0 0, Kristie Hollon 1 0-0 2, Katherine Harris 1 0-0 2, Jen Ingargiola 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 18-27 57.

Three-point goals - GS, S. Selsor 2; H, Ricker.

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