The last few weeks have been very busy for the Fredonia basketball teams. Fredonia hosted Water Canyon on January 9, where the boys took a hard loss of 62-39. The girls had more luck and won 45-21. Both Fredonia teams headed to El Capitan on January 10, where the boys’ varsity were slaughtered and lost 18-65. The girls’ varsity fought hard but came up just a little short, with a loss of 29-39.
Left to right:
Seniors Marshall Zaccaria, Tra’Shawn Ford, Mikelle Waters, Mckenna Grover. Photos and captions by Brooke Kimball.
Tra’Shawn Ford (#3), Kolton Wilmarth (35), Donavan Wilson (#5), Austin Cluff (#21)
Mckenna Grover (#4), Nevaeh Benson (#23), Naveya Estrada (#33), Mikelle Waters (50), Lexie Heaton (#14).
Fredonia hosted Grand Canyon and Williams on January 13-14. The boys had a very close game against Grand Canyon but came up only a few points shy of the win, with the score of 55- 60. They played great against Williams and were up by two at half time. They stayed neck and neck for the first three quarters, but just could not hold them off. Williams pulled away and Fredonia ended with a loss of 34-66. The girls also played well, but just could not quite pull out the win. They lost to the Grand Canyon girls by only three points! The ending score was 28-31. The Lady Lynx also lost to Williams girls, 30-49.
The girls had another shot at El Capitan when Fredonia hosted the game on January 19. The score went back and forth, and both teams fought hard. The Fredonia girls pulled off a great win of 40-29. The boys team took another beating from the boys of El Capitan and lost 27-66.
The teams both hit the road and drove the long bus ride to Seligman on January 21, where the boys had a tough game. They were hoping to win the game to put them in a better position for Super Regionals. They tried hard and had some good moments, but could not get their shots to drop. Fredonia lost 45-60. The girls swept Seligman off their home court with a win of 53-9! Senior, McKenna Grover, had an impressive 26 points! The whole team played great, and some of the Junior Varsity saw some time on the court as well. The girls played again on their home court on January 25 against the Valley Lady Buffalos but could not come away with a win. They lost 25-54.
January 27 was senior night in Fredonia, where the teams faced Ash Fork. The boys came out fighting and scored 12 points pretty quickly, but they hit some roadblocks and did not score many more. Ash Fork kept playing tough and scored almost every possession, this allowed them to win the game and the score ended at 27 for Fredonia and 52 for Ash Fork. Although they lost, Senior Tra’shawn Ford put up 15 points. He has continued to be a huge asset to his team this year and has scored 221 points over the course of the season. He always gives his full effort and never gives up! He has been a leader to the team all season and will be greatly missed next year. Marshall Zaccaria is another senior who is the team manager for the boys’ team. He keeps the atmosphere light with his humor and is a great support to the team and coaches.
The girls came out fighting against Ash Fork and never let their guard down! They won the game 42-15 and had a few high scorers. Junior Lexie Heaton brought her game and put up 13 points, along with the two senior girls. McKenna Grover had 13 points and always has a strong game. She is aggressive and is very good at penetrating to the basket. She hustles and is not afraid to go after the ball – even if it means hitting the floor a few times during a game. She has been a huge asset to the team this year and has contributed 252 points this season.
Mikelle Waters is Grover’s partner in crime on the court and brings her game under the basket. She has had many rebounds and puts the ball right back up in the basket for the score. She is a leader on the court and is not afraid to go after the ball. She always puts her heart on the court and never gives up. She has totaled 208 points this season. Just like peanut butter and jelly, this pair of girls are hard to not like and they are so fun to watch! They work so well together and that makes it hard for anybody to beat them.
Their leadership showed once again on Saturday when they headed to Grand Canyon for their final region game. The game was close and very intense! The girls kept their composure and kept playing ball like they know how. That drive was enough to keep them in the lead and to take the win! Although Lexie Heaton fouled out of the game with just a few minutes left, she played aggressive and made 17 points to help the team with the win. McKenna Grover had 14 points and Mikelle Waters had 14 points. The win was enough to clench the #2 spot in the region! They will start the Super Regional games this week, facing Red Mesa on the Fredonia home court on February 1st.
The boys’ basketball team struggled to pull things together against Grand Canyon on Saturday. They were hoping for a closer game like they had on the Lynx court, but Grand Canyon came to win and the Lynx were not quite prepared to take them on. They took a hard loss of 37-65. Junior Paul Woods was the high scorer of the night, with 18 points. The boys will head to St. Michaels on January 31, for the Super Regional game. Good luck to both teams as they play in the Super Regionals and finish out the season! Go Lynx!
