By Dan Karpiel

The Surveyor

Thursday afternoon, the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) announced the All-State teams for the 2019-20 basketball season and it came as no surprise to see Berthoud well-represented after a spectacular season that saw the team advance to the Final Four round of the state playoffs.

Senior Emily Cavey was honored with an All-State first team selection while junior Bre Fowler was selected to the All-State second team. Furthermore, Berthoud Head Coach Alan Gibson was selected as the Class 4A Coach of the Year.

Gibson is now in his second stint with the Berthoud girls basketball program and, upon returning to the team three seasons ago, said his goal was to continually build the program. Gibson said the goal was the “climb the ladder” and the team has improved their overall record and seeding for the state playoffs in each year under his leadership.

This year, Berthoud finished with a 24-3 overall record that included a 14-2 mark in the Tri-Valley Conference. This season was the first year since 2007 that Berthoud won the conference championship. Gibson’s squad earned the No. 4 seed in the 48-team 4A state playoff bracket. Berthoud enjoyed a bye for the first round of the state playoffs and then made quick work of their competition in the next two rounds, handily defeating Golden and Falcon by 69-46 and 58-42 final scores, respectively.

Berthoud’s next playoff game saw the team welcome conference rival Erie to the BHS gym and the matchup between the No. 4 and 5 seeds did not disappoint. With the gym filled to capacity, and then some, the teams battled to a 51-51 tie at the end of regulation. In the overtime period, it was Fowler and Cavey scoring a combined 13 points thanks to clutch shooting from both the floor and the charity stripe as Berthoud took the game and advanced to the Final Four.

Both Cavey and Fowler were dynamic on both ends of the floor all season long. The pair not only contributing mightily on the stat sheet but also displayed the no-quit attitude that sets great teams apart from good ones. On the season, Cavey led Berthoud in scoring with a stellar 17.2 points per game average while also finishing second on the team with 186 rebounds and third with 82 steals. Fowler averaged 14 points per game and led Berthoud with an incredible 108 assists as the team’s point guard.

As a senior, Cavey will be moving on to the collegiate level next season but her legacy will remain as one of the greatest basketball players to ever come through the Berthoud program, a major feat considering the program’s long history of elite play. Fowler will return for her senior season next winter to lead the Lady Spartans as they will once again chase a state championship.