ROUNDUP: Sophomore Beynon leads way as Pioneer girls roll to Vegas Valley title

Sophomores aren’t commonly tasked with leading a basketball team.

Canyon Springs girls coach Dorothy Kendrick won’t object to youth leadership, though.

Sophomore wing Cherise Beynon scored 24 points to lead the Pioneers to a 60-32 win over Boulder City in the championship game of the Vegas Valley Invitational at Tarkanian Basketball Academy on Saturday.

Beynon, who also grabbed five rebounds, was named tournament Most Valuable Player.

“Cherise is a leader,” Kendrick said. “She’s born to be that leader on this team, and she’s the one who pulls everyone together. She makes sure they respond when they need to respond.”

Beynon’s spin move around a defender for a layup in transition gave the Pioneers (4-0) a 30-12 lead, and it was only one of many impressive plays made by the 5-foot-10-inch sophomore.

Pearl Paulo added 16 points, seven rebounds and two steals for Canyon Springs, and teammate Mandy Chitwood supplied eight points.

“Those are my three musketeers,” Kendrick said. “You’re going to see a lot of action between those three on the court. The one thing that helped them a lot is going to camps over the summer. They built that bond in order to be successful on the court.”

Daijhan Cooks supplied five points and eight rebounds for Canyon Springs, which jumped to an early 18-5 lead and never looked back.

“It’s an awesome boost,” Kendrick said of winning the season-opening tournament. “This is exactly what we needed to start the season. We have a lot of young athletes, and this is a way to boost their morale to know we can compete.”

Karlee Koopman scored eight of her team-high 12 points in the second half and finished with six rebounds for Boulder City (2-2).

Canyon Springs 59, Rancho 24 — Beynon scored 22 points and Paulo added 16 to lead the Pioneers by the Rams in the semifinals.

Darje Martin led Rancho with seven points.

Boulder City 55, Silverado 41 — Koopman had 22 points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots to power the Eagles past the Skyhawks in the other semifinal.

Whitney Barlow added 13 points and eight rebounds for the Eagles, who closed the game on a 30-16 run.

Brittany Loguidice paced Silverado with 15 points.

Cheyenne 41, Shadow Ridge 36 — Lajuana Brown scored 16 points to help the Desert Shields rally past the Mustangs.

Kayla Armstrong added 12 points for Cheyenne, which overcame a 30-24 second-half deficit.

Rayven Thomas and Sabriya Brooks scored eight points apiece for Shadow Ridge.

Desert Pines 41, Chaparral 38 — Cydney Myles scored four of her game-high 24 points in overtime to help the Jaguars outlast the Cowboys.

Tichina Savoy led Chaparral with 10 points.

Silverado 55, Rancho 49 — Jessica Meyers scored 17 points, and Sierra Hester (14) and Brittany Loguidice (12) also scored in double figures as the Skyhawks downed the Rams.

Jordon Williams led Rancho with 13 points. Kanosha Grey added 11 points for the Rams, and Darje Martin scored 10.

Lakeside (Calif.) 51, Western 38 — At Western, McKayla Barbee scored 14 points as the Lancers overcame an 11-5 first-quarter deficit and rallied past the Warriors.

Brittany Moreland had 12 points and 20 rebounds, and Mylasia Smith added 12 points and 12 rebounds for Western.