Senior-led Eagle Valley boys basketball team ready for rivalry game against Battle Mountain
Dylan Zoller and Co. have the Devils sitting at 12-4 going into Thursday's game
Cody Jones/Summit Daily
The senior class on this year’s Eagle Valley boys basketball team is special. No one knows that better than first-year head coach Zachary Haglin.
“I knew they could win a lot of games,” Haglin said. “They’ve played basketball together forever.”
Haglin has been there for much of the ride, too. He worked with the core group 鈥� Jonah Medina, Dylan Zoller, Parker Newbanks, Brian Fontana and Tyler Bates 鈥� when they were freshmen while he served as C-team coach, a position he held for five years before taking over the junior varsity program last year. When he took over for Justin Brandt at the varsity level in August, Haglin prioritized implementing a lock-left defensive system.
“That was just my big focus 鈥� going all in on a defense that had a team purpose,” he said. “Everyone is on the same page working to make the same thing happen.”
It’s worked: Eagle Valley enters Thursday’s rivalry game against Battle Mountain with an 12-4 record. The Devils are on pace to have their best season since 2021-22, when they went 18-6 and tied Palisade for the Western Slope league title. The seniors are a big reason for the success.
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“They really know where each other are on the court. I put in some offensive action, but I really expected them to bring their own flow and experience to the game this year,” Haglin said. “I didn’t want to change what they do too much. In a way, just kind of letting them do their thing, because they play really well together.”
A lot of the action starts with do-it-all guard Dylan Zoller, who is averaging 18.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 1.9 blocks per game. Against Aspen on Jan. 21, the 6-foot-1-inch star showed off his all-around athleticism, hitting a 3-pointer on one end and posterizing a 撸先生er with a one-handed block on the other. Shortly after, he threw down a put-back dunk in an electrifying sequence that singlehandedly brought the Devils back in the game.
“He feeds on that success and when he’s on, look out,” Haglin said. “He’s a heck of an athlete and player. When he’s on it, we’re real tough.”
Parker Newbanks is the team’s most lethal spot-up shooter while Tyler Bates, the team’s leading rebounder, protects the interior. The team’s second-leading scorer, Brian Fontana, has a knack for forcing timely turnovers or knocking down big 3-pointers, as he did against the 撸先生ers.
“He’s one of the most competitive kids,” Haglin said. “On defense, he’s who I look to to give us a spark with a steal.”
Haglin said Medina “leads with hard work and a positive attitude every day.”
“He brings it in practice,” the coach said. “I think he kind of keeps my practices competitive a lot of times.”
Eagle Valley enjoyed an eight-game winning streak from Dec. 14 to Jan. 16, highlighted by a 76-60 win over Fruita on Dec. 18.
“We were shutting them down. They’re offense kind of stalled. We were moving the ball well, getting out on the fast break,” Haglin stated. “That really felt like this is the team I want to see on the court.”
Evergreen eventually ended the streak with a 72-63 win. In their next game, Aspen pulled away late for a 15-point victory in Gypsum. In both contests, the Devils struggled to shut down a big physical post presence. Haglin hopes both losses can be used as a springboard for late-season success.
The Devils rebounded with a win over Summit in the league opener on Tuesday. Looking ahead at the Western Slope calendar, Haglin expects Glenwood Springs to provide the stiffest challenge. Then again 鈥� even though Battle Mountain is just 3-8 鈥� he knows Thursday’s game won’t be easy.
“It’s definitely the game they bring the most energy,” he said of the Huskies. “In the past, they’ve always prepared for us and really gotten after it. It’s always fun to go play them because the students just eat it up.”
Since the Western Slope only has four teams, the league winner will not earn an automatic state berth. Thus, the Devils will have to rely on their RPI ranking 鈥� which takes into account the strength of schedule 鈥� to make the field. The No. 14-ranked Devils rescheduled their game against No. 1 Lutheran for Feb. 3 in Gypsum. Their other non-league opponent is Roaring Fork in the Feb. 22 season finale.
Regarding the team’s objectives moving forward, Haglin said: “Win out and then hopefully we can get a decent spot in the playoff and put together a win in the first or second round.” In order to do that, he knows his veterans will have to come through in their final prep campaigns.
“I have a super talented group of seniors that really wants to make some playoff hopes and dreams happen,” Haglin said. “That’s the goal.”
