After winning just one game last season, the Montezuma-Cortez High School girls basketball team own a 4-2 record and are brimming with confidence.
Playing their final game before Christmas break on the road against Aztec on Dec. 20, the Panthers came from behind to win, 34-33.
“It was kind of a slug match back and forth,” said M-CHS head coach John McHenry. “We trailed the entire game, but we were able to come from behind and pull it out at the end.”
McHenry said that Savannah Jacket and Nicole Demby played key roles in the Panthers victory.
Prior to defeating Aztec, M-CHS matched up against Shiprock Northwest in Cortez on Dec. 19 and came through with a 68-57 victory.
“The game against Shiprock Northwest was definitely what we needed,” said McHenry. “They came at us with a full court press the whole game. We had to break it and we ran our fast break all night long.”
Leading the way for M-CHS were senior Abby Chupp and junior Yanibah Bayles, who broke out of early-season scoring slumps to notch 16 points and 15 points respectively.
“(Abby) had a pivotal three and a nice fingertip roll in the pain to get her going,” said McHenry. “Bayles came off the bench and made some good hustle plays on defense. They were worried about her driving and she stepped back and hit a couple of threes.”
According to McHenry, M-CHS trailed by ten points at halftime before coming on strong in the second half.
“They finally settled down and started making smart passes against the press,” said McHenry. “At that point, everything changed.”
After taking a brief break for the Christmas holiday, the Panthers will return to practice and focus on improving against full court presses. M-CHS will play its first game after Christmas on the road against Centauri on Jan. 9.
“It’s really great for the program to be 4-2,” said McHenry. “We have to keep our plan of attach the same (after Christmas). We will focus on pressing and breaking the press.”