AURORA | With all but one of her players adjusting to the rigors of the varsity level, Gateway girls basketball coach Tammi Traylor-Statewright has seen a rollercoaster ride early in the 2014-15 season.

Though a 1-6 record going into the Heritage Memorial Hoopla Tournament didn’t completely reflect the potential the Olys seem to have, things looked quite fluid Thursday evening during their 58-39 victory over Mountain Range.

Carmen Ramey — Gateway’s only returning player with regular varsity experience coming into the season — poured in 15 points, Aerial Brown added 14 and Taylor Bender and Makayla Jones chipped in eight apiece as Gateway advanced to a championship semifinal matchup with host Heritage at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Eagles steamrolled Thornton 52-9 in another first-round matchup.

The win already assured the Olys of a better result than their previous tournament in which they took eighth at the Dakota Ridge Tournament.

Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel

GATEWAY 58, MOUNTAIN RANGE 39

Score by quarters:

Gateway      12  17  14  13 — 58

Mtn. Range  7  13    6  13 — 39

GATEWAY (58)

Ashley Ramey 3 0-2 6, Aerial Brown 5 1-2 14, Kierra Littlejohn 1 0-0 3, Carmen Ramey 4 6-8 15, Parys Wilkinson 2 0-0 4, Makayla Jones 3 2-4 8, Taylor Bender 4 0-0 8, Raeniyah Carter 0 0-2 0. Totals 22 9-18 58.

MOUNTAIN RANGE (39)

Krista Mayer 1 0-0 2, Lexi Swenson 1 5-6 7, Carly Hodge 1 1-2 3, Dani Ponzio 1 0-0 3, Amber Gustafson 3 0-0 6, Sarah Crespin 1 0-0 2, Lacy Ditirro 0 0-0 0, Miranda Trujillo 1 0-2 2, Jenna Mayer 1 1-2 3. Totals 10 7-12 39.

3-point field goals — Gateway (5): Aerial Brown 3, Kierra Littlejohn, Carmen Ramey; Mountain Range: Dani Ponzio. Total fouls — Gateway 18, Mountain Range 12. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None.

Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor and photographer with Sentinel Colorado. A Denver East High School and University of Colorado alum. He came to the Sentinel in 2001 and since then has received a number...