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Soroco’s Peterson inks with Adams State for basketball

Austin Colbert
Soroco High School senior Briana Peterson signs her letter of intent Thursday to play basketball at Division II Adams State University next season. Peterson, along with fellow senior Kali Constine, won a program best 69 games over her four years.
Austin Colbert

— Soroco High School senior Briana Peterson said from the moment she started playing basketball for the Rams, she thought she could one day play in college. Her parents — Greg and Stephanie Peterson — thought the same, but didn’t foresee the hurdles their daughter would have to overcome to get there.

“She kind of got sidelined there for two years with ACL surgeries, and coming back and being able to go play college ball is fantastic,” Stephanie Peterson said. “We are very excited for her. Ever since she started playing basketball, this is what she wanted.”

Briana Peterson tore her ACL the final game of her freshman season and tore the same knee again only eight games into her sophomore season. This did little to derail the young dreamer, however, who fought back from each injury to come out stronger than before.



This drive resulted in Thursday’s ceremony in Oak Creek, where Briana Peterson signed her letter of intent to join the women’s basketball program at NCAA Division II Adams State University next season.

“Just being strong-willed and wanting to reach your goals and doing everything you can to get them is a big part of who I am,” she said. “It’s exciting getting to talk to new people and visit new places. But, the end result of deciding where you want to go is the stressful part.”



Briana Peterson decided only earlier this week she wanted to attend Adams State, located in Alamosa. She visited similar schools in Nebraska and Oklahoma before determining Adams State had everything she wanted.

“We really liked the coach. We loved the girls,” Stephanie Peterson said. “We went down this last weekend and had a workout and dinner and got to meet all the girls, and they just have a real supportive program, a real family kind of mentality, and that’s what we want for our kid.”

Briana Peterson leaves behind quite the legacy at Soroco. Through the course of her four years with the girls’ basketball team, the Rams won 69 games, a program record she shares with fellow four-year senior Kali Constine. Soroco finished 20-4 overall this winter, only the second 20-win season in program history. Peterson led the team with 23 points and nearly 10 rebounds per game.

Soroco’s season ended for the third consecutive year in its Class 2A regional championship game, a 53-41 loss to top-seeded Paonia, the eventual state runner-up.

Postseason, Peterson was named the Western Slope Gore League player of the year to go along with second team all-state honors.

“To come back and get better from that after every year has to do with how much she works and how much time she spent in the gym. It shows a lot about her,” Soroco girls’ basketball coach David Bruner said of Peterson’s injuries. “She has a great work ethic, and she’ll be successful at the next level because of that.”

Adams State competes out of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. The Grizzlies are looking to rebuild after one of their worst seasons in recent years, going 3-22 over the winter. Their last winning season came in 2010-11, a 23-10-4 campaign.

Listed at 5-feet, 11-inches, Briana Peterson looks to fit right in with the roster third-year coach Larry Joe Hunt has built heading into the 2016-17 season.

“Their basketball program is very tough, and they all work hard. They have a lot of support on campus,” she said. “Yeah, I’m ready. Obviously, it’s going to be an adjustment, as it always is going from one thing to another. But, I’m excited, and I’m ready.”

To reach Austin Colbert, call 970-871-4204, email acolbert@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @Austin_Colbert


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