Monument Valley Wins State Title Over Lady Bulldogs At The Buzzer

By Sam Conner
   The Monument Valley Lady Mustangs edged the Winslow Lady Bulldogs 47-46 on a put back shot by Bradley Nash at the buzzer of the Arizona State 3A Conference Tournament final game in Glendale on Saturday. The win ended Monument Valley’s season with a 22-9 record and ended Winslow’s season with a 29-2 record.
   The contest between the two evenly matched teams was led by Winslow at the end of each of the first three quarters, but that lead was never substantial. The Lady Bulldogs were up 9-8 after the first quarter and 20-18 at the intermission. The 36-31 lead after three quarters was one of the largest of the game for either team. Monument Valley came back quickly to tie the score at 38-38 with 5:47 left in the contest and neither team had more than a three-point advantage after that. The teams swapped leads for the remainder of the contest.
   Winslow took its last lead on a basket by Raquel Singer with just seconds left on the clock to put the score at 46-45. Monument Valley had just time to bring the ball down court and take a shot, which missed, but was immediately rebounded and put back in by Nash to win the game.
   The Lady Bulldogs were magnificent from the foul line, hitting 22 of 30 attempts to just nine of 17 for Monument Valley. The Lady Mustangs hit just one more two-point goal than Winslow, but connected on six three-pointers to just four for the Lady Bulldogs.
   Kourtney Shirley of Winslow led all scorers with 20 points, including a perfect 10 for 10 performance at the charity stripe, two three-pointers and two regular baskets. Raquel Singer was also in double figures for the Lady Bulldogs with 10 points.
   Crystal Todachine led Monument Valley with 13 points. Bradley Nash added 11 for the Lady Mustangs, and Angelique had 10.
Mon Valley 8 10 13 16   47
Winslow       9 11 16 10   46
   Monument Valley: Crystal Todachine 13, Kristy Bedoni 6, Nicolette Parrish 5, Angelique Black 10, Bradley Nash 11 and Mariah Gilmore 2.
   Winslow: Kourtney Shirley 20, Cassandra Jensen 5, Paige Shirley 3, Chrissandria Jackson 5, Shernise Ward 3 and Raquel Singer 10.
   The Lady Bulldogs edged the Alchesay Lady Falcons 61-54 in overtime in the semifinals of the state tournament Friday.
   Winslow had a double-digit, 17-6 lead after the first quarter and still led 28-16 at the half. Alchesay began a magnificent comeback in the third quarter and had cut the lead to 38-34 entering the fourth period. The Lady Falcons tied the score early in the fourth.
   Gabrielle Stacey hit a three-point shot with 2:30 left in the game for her only points of the game and a 47-44 Winslow lead. Alchesay took a 50-47 lead inside the last minute. Winslow tied the score at 50-all on free throws by Kourtney Shirley with 18 seconds left. Alchesay missed both free throws and a chance to win with just six seconds left, allowing regulation play to end in a 50-50 tie.
   Raquel Singer scored the first four points of the overtime on two free throws and a field goal. Chrissandria Jackson’s three-pointer gave Winslow a 57-50 lead with two and a half minutes left and the Lady Bulldogs held that margin for the remainder of the contest.
   Noel Hinton of Alchesay led all scorers with 21 points. Quintina Aday was not far behind Hinton with 18 points. Marie Lupe was also in double figures for the Lady Falcons with 11 points.
   Kourtney Shirley led Winslow with 14 points. Chrissandria Jackson and Raquel Singer scored 13 each for the Lady Bulldogs.
   Accuracy at the charity stripe was key for the Winslow effort. The Lady Bulldogs made 12 of 14 attempts, while Alchesay hit only 10 of 19 shots from the line.
   Monument Valley blew a big lead against Chinle in the other semi-final game, but won 55-46 to earn a berth in the championship game.
Alchesay 6 10 18 16   4   54
Winslow 17 11 10 12 11   61
   Alchesay: Marie Lupe 11, Noel Hinton 21, Sarah Tessay 2, Quintina Aday 18 and Lawissa Natan 2.
   Winslow: Gabrielle Stacey 3, Samantha Sam 6, Chrissandria Jackson 13, Cassandra Jensen 2, Kourtney Shirley 14, Paige Shirley 2, Shernise Ward 8 and Raquel Singer 13.
   Prior to the Winslow-Alchesay game, Winslow Coach Don Petranovich was honored as the Arizona Coach of the Year. He has more wins than any coach in Arizona history.