It’s been a hard year for the West Grand boys basketball team, which has battled in close contests throughout the year and struggled to win a number of them.

West Grand boys fell 54-44 to Lake County on Tuesday. The Mustangs were down in the fourth quarter by two possessions but missed four free throws in the last three minutes.

“It’s been a frustrating year,” Coach Leo Pesch said. “We’ve been in every game and can’t close out at the end of the game. I know the boys are as frustrated as I am at that.”

West Grand turned the tables and defeated Hayden 51-47 on Saturday. However, the Mustangs also fell 47-43 vs. Rangely on Feb. 23 and lost 47-40 to Vail Christian on Feb. 26.

Those close games have been especially tough with five players scheduled to graduate. They’ve got a lot of talent, size and speed, but Pesch said he’ll remember this year’s leaders most for their hard work, determination and refusal to quit.

The five boys include Rene and Jesus Dominguez, Alex Schake, Charlie Multerer and Alejandro Castanon.

As the point guard, Rene Dominguez has been West Grand’s floor captain all year. He leads the Mustangs’ offense and does a great job commanding respect from his teammates and West Grand’s opponents, Pesch said.

At the same time, Multerer and Schake, have both come a long way, Pesch continued. Schake has absolutely owned the offensive rebounds this year and he’s been great to have on the team. Because of his dominating height, Multerer gets beat up a lot in the post but Pesch also said that he does a great job maintaining his composure and producing for the team.

Castanon has also done a good job this year coming on and off the bench and filling an important role for the Mustangs. “We really appreciate having him on the team,” Pesch said of the four-year basketball player.

Jesus Dominguez, who should be a junior, is also looking to graduate this year with his classwork scheduled for completion, and Pesch said that he has also done amazing work for the Mustangs this season, though it’s been an especially hard year for Jesus Dominguez too.

“I’m going to remember this year as the COVID year,” Pesch said. “These guys never really had a chance to go summer camps and work together much as a team, but as a group of young men, I’ll always remember them for their effort.”

Heading into Thursday night’s contest vs North Park, the Mustangs were 6-6 overall and 5-3 in league play. West Grand is scheduled to face Oletha on Saturday in the team’s final game of the season.