Wildcats put clamps on Foothill

LaShondra Rayford turned to one of her assistants during the fourth quarter Wednesday and mentioned that it had been awhile since the Las Vegas High girls basketball team allowed a basket.

“I thought it was about three or four minutes,” Rayford said.

The Wildcats coach wasn’t even close.

Las Vegas held visiting Foothill without a field goal for nearly seven minutes in the second half and pulled away for a 57-41 victory in the quarterfinals of the Division I Sunrise Region tournament.

The Wildcats (20-8) take on Liberty (25-6) in the semifinals at 6:20 p.m. today at Green Valley.

Matti Ventling had 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead Las Vegas. Shomari Harris added 19 points and Shaleea Butler 12 rebounds for the Wildcats, who broke open a close game with an 11-0 run in the fourth quarter.

“As a team, I thought this was our best effort of the season defensively,” said Rayford, whose team lost to Foothill 58-45 on Dec. 13. “Once we settled down and regained our composure, we got back to doing what we do.”

Anaya Rodisha led the Falcons (18-10) with 23 points and 10 rebounds. She scored the first seven points of the third quarter to help rally Foothill, which trailed 30-19 at halftime.

Katey Roquemore’s bucket with 25 seconds left in the third cut Las Vegas’ lead to 38-34. But the Falcons went cold against Las Vegas’ zone defense in the fourth quarter until Rodisha’s 3-pointer with 1:32 remaining made the score 52-41.

■ Coronado 51, Valley 47 — At Coronado, the Cougars outscored the Vikings 16-8 in the fourth quarter to secure the victory.

Sofie Cruz had eight of her 16 points in the fourth quarter to lead the comeback. Ashley Johnson finished with 15 points for the Cougars (19-8), who play Canyon Springs (22-5) at 3 p.m. today at Green Valley.

■ Liberty 64, Green Valley 39 — At Liberty, Paris Strawther had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Sydney Clark added 13 points and seven rebounds to help the Patriots advance.

Dayanni Cochran scored 11 points for Liberty (25-6). Maggie Manwarren scored 16 points for Green Valley (18-11).

■ Canyon Springs 70, Basic 47 — At Canyon Springs, Daijhan Cooks had 17 points and 19 rebounds, and Cherise Beynon added 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists to power the Pioneers (22-5).

Alexia Thrower had nine points and 11 rebounds for Canyon Springs. Jayla Brown led Basic (14-11) with 19 points.

DIVISION I SUNSET GIRLS

■ Cimarron-Memorial 49, Arbor View 41 — At Arbor View, after a lackluster effort on offense in the first half, Cimarron bypassed quick shots in favor of the extra pass and turned a 17-13 halftime deficit into a victory in a Sunset Region quarterfinal.

The Spartans (13-14), who are in the postseason for the first time since 2002, face Centennial (24-4) at 3 p.m. today at Durango.

“We made one adjustment — just being patient,” Cimarron coach Greg Holloway said. “We wanted to work the ball, get a couple of reverses. I felt like we took quick shots in the first half.”

Cimarron was 5-for-31 from the field, including 1-for-14 on 3-pointers, in the first half and suffered through a scoreless drought of 8:10 in the half.

“It really was our type of game, low scoring, grinding, fighting,” Holloway said. “All season long, it’s been like that.”

Arbor View trimmed its deficit to 28-27, but Cimarron scored the next six points and wasn’t seriously threatened again, forcing 11 turnovers in the fourth quarter. The Aggies shot 16 of 54 from the field and had 30 turnovers.

“We work on defense primarily at the start and finish of every practice,” Holloway said. “We believe in it. We buy into it. We trust in it.”

Emily Cox scored 13 of her 15 points in the fourth quarter to lead Cimarron. Taya Harper added 14 points — 12 after halftime — and Chalon Henderson had nine points and 15 rebounds for the Spartans.

Ariona Gill had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Janae Strode added 10 points and 14 rebounds for Arbor View, which was making its first playoff appearance.

■ Desert Oasis 60, Durango 37 — At Durango, Sammi Tso scored 21 points to lift the Diamondbacks (16-11).

Ashley Hibbard added 10 points for Desert Oasis, which plays Bishop Gorman (18-8) at 6:20 p.m. today at Durango.

Jazmine Chavez had 17 points to lead the Trailblazers (11-14).

■ Centennial 60, Palo Verde 11 — At Centennial, the Bulldogs led 18-0 after one quarter and rolled past the Panthers (8-15).

Jada Brown had 16 points and Paige Barber scored 14 for Centennial, which extended its lead to 43-4 at the half.

■ Bishop Gorman 71, Sierra Vista 26 — At Gorman, Raychel Stanley scored 18 points as the Gaels cruised to victory over the Mountain Lions.

April Rivers chipped in 16 points for Gorman.

Kelsey Jimenez led Sierra Vista (6-21) with nine points.

DIVISION I-A GIRLS

■ Faith Lutheran 47, Virgin Valley 39 — At Faith Lutheran, senior point guard Julia Benko had 23 points and four rebounds to lead the Crusaders over the Bulldogs in the Division I-A Southern Region quarterfinals.

Faith Lutheran (17-8) will meet Chaparral (19-6) in a semifinal at 3 p.m. today at Sunrise Mountain.

“I knew I was going to have to go out there and give it my all,” said Benko, who set the pace with 13 points in the first half. “The seniors knew that if we didn’t win, it would be our last game.”

Virgin Valley went cold midway through the third quarter, and a six-minute scoring drought led to an 11-0 spurt that gave the Crusaders a 36-24 lead heading into the fourth.

“Defense has been the key for us all season,” Faith Lutheran coach Jennifer Karner said. “We want to force the outside shot because that gives us a better chance to beat teams.”

Dani Tharaldson helped the Crusaders with nine points and six rebounds, and teammate Taylor Hammer added seven points, 11 rebounds and four blocks.

Nikki Arquette and Abbie Barnard finished with 13 points apiece for the Bulldogs (18-7).

■ Chaparral 47, Cheyenne 43 — At Chaparral, Unique Wilson had 19 points, and the Cowboys went 8-for-14 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter to outlast the Desert Shields.

Lajuana Brown had 15 points to lead Cheyenne (8-14).

■ Moapa Valley 42, Clark 37 — At Clark, Kimberly Lewis had 14 points, and the Pirates (15-10) grabbed a 23-11 halftime lead on their way to a win over the Chargers (12-15).

Moapa Valley will face Boulder City (17-6) at 6:20 p.m. today at Sunrise Mountain.

Bobbi Floyd had 14 points for Clark, which made just 4 of 21 free throws.

■ Boulder City 51, Western 35 — At Boulder City, Alyssa Ybarra had 21 points and nine rebounds as the Eagles defeated the Warriors.

Mallory Bird added 12 points and 12 rebounds for Boulder City.

Guadalupe Herrera led Western (10-18) with 16 points.

DIVISION IV BOYS

■ Beatty 58, Adelson School 45 — At Beatty, Carlos Gomez and Chris Dunlap each had 17 points to lead the Hornets (6-7) over the Lions (7-9) in the Division IV Southern League tournament.

Beatty will face Pahranagat Valley (11-11) at 8 p.m. Friday at Chaparral in a semifinal.