Warriors win Valley battle

PALMER -- A basketball game started Friday at Colony High School and a hockey game broke out.

In a match that rivaled the intensity of a football game, hockey game or even a bout at the Ultimate Fighting Championships, the state's top-ranked 4A squad survived to beat the stingy and aggressive Colony Knights 53-49.

The game looked as if it was the basis for a Hollywood teenage melodrama. Nearly 2,000 crazed fans surrounded the court. Wasilla fans broke out the red W's painted on their chests and the Colony patrons made an attempt at humor with a derogatory rhyme about Wasilla's Buddy Bailey printed on a large banner they unveiled in the fourth quarter.

The cheerleaders even squared off in a battle at halftime that could have come straight from the script of "Bring it On."

The slugfest featured four hard eight-minute rounds. The Warriors notched the knock-out as Ray Schafer slammed the ball home for Wasilla as time expired. Chaos nearly erupted as Wasilla called for the foul on Colony's Joe Reza who cross-checked Schafer during the dunk.

Players from both benches cleared and the authors of the Bailey rhyme stormed the court. There was no need for tear gas as the crowds were kept separated, preventing a possible ruckus.

Just moments earlier, amid a sea of heckling fans, Bailey sank a pair of free throws to cap off a 23-point performance and seal the win for the Warriors.

This came just seconds after Reza missed a pair of shots from the charity stripe that would have tied the contest.

From the initial bell both teams came out fighting. The Knights used their army of forwards to combat the size of Wasilla.

Just minutes into the game, Schafer stepped into the Colony paint and was greeted by Knight forward Jason Christiansen.

Christiansen stepped up and drove his chest into the 7-foot frame of Schafer.

Though the hard foul sent Christiansen to the floor and Schafer to the line, it opened the eyes of not only Schafer, but the Warriors collectively.

"That set a tone," Colony head coach Phil Engebretsen said. "Need to make the fouls count."

"Ray did not know what to expect, Christiansen did a great job on him," Wasilla head coach Jason Marvel said.

"We knew it would be tough competition," Schafer said. "They played great defense on me all night."

Colony tied the contest at 33-33 with a Justin Coffman driving layup.

Coffman attracted a Bailey foul and completed the three-point play to give Colony its first lead since very early in the contest.

After Wasilla regained momentum late in the third and early in the fourth quarter, Christiansen hit a three-pointer with just less than four minutes left in regulation to cut the Wasilla lead to 47-45.

Schafer added scored a minute later to give Wasilla a four-point advantage.

After a pair of free-throws from Colony's Jon Elliot, Bailey notched a lay-up to give Wasilla 51-47 lead.

Luke Schafer was called for the push under the basket with 23 seconds left sending Coffman to the line. The Colony senior sank both free throws.

Reza's missed free throws followed.

"It was just a great high school basketball game," Engebretsen said. "Unfortunately someone had to lose and it was us.

"The fans got their money's worth."

"I think this is a testament to my guys, they can overcome adversity," Marvel said. "When it comes time to step up, they do."