In the final two minutes of the Soroco High School girls basketball game versus Hayden, Rams senior Kayedence Bruner hit a jump shot.

As the ball fell through the net, the four-sport athlete jumped around and smiled big at her teammates, a strange reaction to a shot late in a not-so-close game. Turns out, the shot was far from meaningless. It put Bruner at 1,001 points in her career.

According to Soroco coach and her father, David Bruner, Kayedence is one of four Rams to have achieved such a feat, including Kayedence’s older sister, Dakota.

“I think it’s just really special. My sister hit over 1,000, and it was a huge deal for her,” Kayedence said. “I always compared myself to her, and I finally got that goal, so it meant a lot.”

Soroco ran away with a 60-33 win over Routt County rival Hayden in the home game on Friday, Feb. 11. The Rams have now won 14 in a row.

Hayden knew Soroco would be tough, but they were still going to fight.

Through the first five minutes, it looked like a solid fight was all it would take to make it a close game. Soroco led 4-2 and defense took center stage for both squads.

Many possessions passed without a score. When the Rams broke through, the offense came pouring out, and the Rams took a 13-4 first quarter lead.

While Soroco was the better team, Hayden prompted mistakes the Rams don’t normally make. Soroco hit eight fouls in the first half and gave the Tigers too many scoring chances due to turnovers.

Hayden kept Soroco to just 37 points through three quarters, which is impressive against the Rams, who are averaging about 60 points a game.

“We put a huge focus on our defense tonight and just let everything else play out like it could. I couldn’t be more proud of the girls,” said Hayden coach Jeff Schlim. “They did what I asked of them from the get-go.”

Soroco sophomore Lexi Vandenburg said despite being on an extensive streak, the Rams knew to be wary of Hayden.

“It’s never easy to play Hayden,” she said. “They come out for us every year. … It’s just always a rivalry.”

Despite having a strong game against the No. 4 in the state, many Tigers were upset and emotional after the loss. The Tigers haven’t beaten the Rams in almost 10 years and they were hoping Friday night would snap that skid.

“This is a big game,” said junior Tessa Booco. “It’s one of the biggest games of our season.”

Booco was one of few not in tears. She was sad her team couldn’t pull out the win, but knew it was a great effort.

“We held our own,” she said. “We always know Soroco is a tough team, but we never let that stop us. We bring it to them every time. We make them work for it.”

Soroco has two games left and will look to end the season with 16 straight wins and an 18-1 record.

Meanwhile, Hayden will try to avoid a losing record. The Tigers have three left and if the win them all, they’ll be 5-5 in regional play and 8-8 overall.

Soroco 60, Hayden 33

S 13 14 10 23 – 60

H 4 10 8 11 – 33