LOCAL GLANCE (Jan. 31): JUCO Softball, Prep Basketball
The Arizona Western softball team opened the Great Western Shootout with three wins Thursday, including a 6-4 win against No. 1 Salt Lake.
“We did a very good job of playing hard all day today to get three wins,” coach Nikki Bethurum said. “To cap off the day with beating the No. 1 team in the country this time around-after coming so close last week-was very satisfying.”
The Matadors also beat Souther Nevada 6-3 and Western Nevada 10-2.
Against Salt Lake, they jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Hayley Miller, pitching in relief, gave up two runs in the top of the seventh but picked up the win to improve to 3-1. Samantha Mendoza had a two-run home run for the Matadors, and Alex Roman and Robyn Alvara added two hits.
Against Western Nevada, the Matadors pounded out 13 hits in the six-inning game. April Marquez hit a grand slam, and Lauren Miranda and Mariah Caro added solo home runs. Miller pitched a complete game for the win.
Against Southern Nevada, Briana VanSickle (1-0) pitched all seven innings, giving up three runs in the final frame. Mendoza had a three-run homer and Courtnie Ploesch had a three-hit game.
The Matadors play three more games today in the tournament.
PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL
Gila Ridge beats San Luis
Nadine Gil and Mariah Carter led a balanced scoring effort for Gila Ridge as they defeated San Luis 51-38 Thursday night.
Gil and Carter each scored 11 points while Gil had six steals and Carter had eight rebounds.
“It was a safe lead at times, but they cut it down to eight at one point,” said Gila Ridge coach David Schultz. “They were still fighting and playing hard.”
San Pasqual wins finale
Entering the night 12th in Division IV Section I, the San Pasqual girls basketball team won its finale 44-24 against Arizona Charter.
It was senior night, and the three Warrior seniors led the team in scoring — Bobbyonah Bohanon (15), Tatiana Damon (13) and Marissa Miller (12).
The top eight teams in the section make the section tournament.
Antelope falls at Gila Bend
Gila Bend used a 13-2 third quarter to put away Antelope 49-40 on Thursday.
Samantha Twist had 10 points and nine rebounds for the Rams.
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL
Hawks blow out Sidewinders
Chase Shill led the Hawks with 13 points in their 75-40 win over San Luis Thursday night.
Brandon Kehl and Marcus Weeks also scored in double figures for Gila Ridge with 11 and 10 points respectively.
“Tonight was our very first game where we started strong and put four quarters together really well,” said Hawks coach Joe Daily. “We jumped out early and never looked back. A lot of the kids played well today and we played well as a team.”
Rams lose to Gila Bend
Beto Castro scored 18 in Antelope's 76-62 loss to Gila Bend Thursday.
Jerry Avans and Ramon Alcala each had 14 for the Rams.
