Gathering state hardware is always an achievement for high schools, but the McClave Lady Cards will look back upon the 2008 season as one in which they had a chance to win their fourth gold ball.
    After suffering a heart-breaking 40-35 loss in the semifinals to Briggsdale, the Cardinals rebounded and won the third place trophy by virtue of their 61-41 win over Crested Butte.
    But district rival Eads won their second consecutive championship with a 59-37 pounding of Briggsdale in the state championship game.    McClave, the number one seed going into the state tournament, came out sluggishly against Hi Plains, their first round rival. They actually trailed Hi Plains 9-7 after quarter one but behind eight points from junior Jerrica Mallard, McClave took a 22-17 halftime lead they would never relinquish.

    The Cards built that lead to 16 at one point in the second half but allowed Hi Plains, a scrappy, small team, to come back to within four twice late in the fourth quarter. Poor free throw shooting, which would come back to haunt McClave in the semifinals, allowed Hi Plains to get closer than they should have.     The Cards only hit six of 13 from the charity stripe in the final period, when they could have closed out Hi Plains.
    Mallard was the leader offensively, as she finished with 25 points, while Ashley Tague and Adrianne Cline added nine apiece.
    That set the stage for the semifinal match-up with Briggsdale, a first time participant in the Big Show. It would be another sluggish offensive performance by McClave, but they took an early lead and held until late in the fourth quarter.
 

   McClave led 6-5 after one quarter and 14-11 at halftime.     McClave allowed Briggsdale only one basket the entire first half, but the Lady Falcons kept it close with free throws. It was poor shooting that would hurt McClave throughout the game. The Cards, in fact, missed 10 layups or uncontested put-backs on the evening.     The Cards still led with three minutes remaining when the doors came off.
     Turnovers, forced shots, and one for seven free throw shooting in the second half doomed the Cards' trip to the state championship game as Briggsdale made 11 of 12 free throws in the final period to gain the win.
     Briggsdale shot 15 more free throws in the inconsistently called game. Mallard, who suffered the worst shooting night of her career with three field goals in 22 attempts, led McClave with 10 points.
  

  McClave showed their pride in the third place game with Crested Butte.
    After leading only 14-10 after period one, the Cards lengthened their lead in both the second and third stanzas, leading by as many as 27 at one point.
    Reserves got to play the final five minutes of the game, as the Cards coasted to an easy 20-point victory to gain the state third place trophy. Mallard again led the Cardinal scoring attack with 27 points, including 13 of 16 from the free throw line.
    Tawnie Buxton had 11 points and eight rebounds, while senior Ashley Tague closed out her Cardinal career with 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
 

   "I will always look back on this year as one that we let things get away from us. There is no doubt in my mind that we would have beaten Eads in the championship game; we know how to play them, when everyone else is intimidated by them. We just picked a bad time to play poorly. I will think about the semifinal loss for a long time. We beat Briggsdale nine out 10 times we play them; we just didn't get it done. That is the thing kids learn about high school sports - you don't get second chances in the state tournament.
    “We had a good year; we finished 23-3 and third at state. But at McClave the goal is always the gold ball; nothing less," said McClave coach Dick Peecher.